Project: Teenage Wasteland
by xo.Kyorii
Summary: Welcome to Kingdom Hearts Island Resort, where you can indulge in countless luxuries, unlimited desserts a la mode, wild parties, persistent ex-boyfriends, deranged housemates, manipulative reporters, ridiculously over exaggerated teenage drama, and much more. Click here to purchase your ticket now!
1. the summer of our lives

**A/N:** On May 24, 2010, the first Teenage Wasteland was released. Today, exactly five years later, I am excited to release a new and hopefully condensed version of what I promised to finish years ago for reasons that will become clearer at the end of the chapter. I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me, and I hope you enjoy!

And if you're a new reader hopping aboard the Teenage Wasteland train, a very warm welcome to you! Before every chapter, I introduce some "background information" that may help with understanding the text and a "line of the chapter" that foreshadows what the following chapter has to offer. I hope you enjoy this bumpy ride!

 **Disclaimer:** The following story if a work of fan fiction. The author does not, in any way, own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, or any other Squenix game of the sort. Other names, places, and incidents are the product of the author's imagination, and any resemblance to actual events, other stories, locale, or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. Rated T for later themes and language.

* * *

 **Background Information:**

 **LOCATIONS:**

 **Kingdom Hearts Resort:** An island resort built exclusively for teenagers only.

 **Destiny Islands:** A luscious island with picturesque white sands and crystal waters that is home to Sora, Kairi, and Riku.

 **Twilight Town:** A peaceful sunset-painted suburb/town where Hayner, Pence, Axel, and Xion reside.

 **New Twilight:** The heart of Twilight Town's downtown area that is home to both Roxas and Naminé.

 **Radiant Garden Academy:** A prestigious boarding school attended by Kairi and Olette.

 **TERMINOLOGY:**

 **Fuqboi:** A fuck boy. The lowest possible form of asshole.

* * *

 **[ REC o ]**

"Is the camera on? Are we on? Yes? Are you getting my good angle, 'cause my hair looks so much better on the—oh, we're on right now? Okay. Ahem. Good morning Teenage Wasteland viewers! It's your favourite TV personality, Selphie Tilmitt, coming to you live from the newly built Disney Castle of Kingdom Hearts Island Resort: the hottest summer resort built exclusively for teenagers only!

I am very excited to announce that in honour of the castle's completion, the Dr. Scrooge Sea Salt Ice Cream Company has agreed to give four lucky winners the opportunity to live in the lavishly decorated castle for the entire summer! And on top of staying in the island's most prestigious suites with royal treatment, winners are allowed to bring one guest, will have access to fast passes to all resort attractions, and will win two thousand munny as a welcoming gift.

All you have to do is purchase a sea salt ice cream bar at the nearest store near you, and if your popsicle stick reads winner, prepare yourself for an incredible summer to come! Who will be our lucky winners this year? Wherever you all may be, we can't wait to give you one hell of a vacation. This is Selphie Tilmitt, signing off!"

* * *

 **PROJECT: TEENAGE WASTELAND  
** **I: the summer of our lives**

* * *

 **Destiny Islands, 7:28AM**

"Bag of M&M's?"

"Check."

"Two packs of bacon?"

"Check."

"Nerf Raider CS-35?"

"Check."

"Nerf Maverick REV-6?"

"Check."

"Extra pack of Nerf bullets?"

Riku shakes his head disapprovingly as he lowers his best friend's crumpled and poorly written list.

"Sora, do you really need to pack all this stuff?" he asks. He observes the list once again, noting that they're not even halfway through the _Super Important!_ section. "We'll be working like ninety percent of the time. You'll barely have time to even use this crap."

"It's an island full of teenagers, Riku," Sora reminds while snatching the paper from his hands. "I'm not wasting any chances for safety."

"I hardly consider Nerf guns a reliable form of defense," Riku admits with a chuckle.

"Okay one, these things are deadly if you have my killer precision," Sora argues. "And two, these are the only weapons I'm allowed to bring without security questioning me at the airport. It's not like I can just pack my keyblade and be on my merry way."

"Whatever," Riku says while making his way to the door. "Just meet me in the car once you're done packing your five packs of paopu juice."

"You're right, it should be six," Sora ultimately decides as he reaches for his mini fridge and tosses another pack into his luggage. Riku shakes his head once again.

"Just hurry up. We need to be at the airport in half an hour," he reminds. Sora only sends him a knowing grin.

"You just can't wait to lay your eyes on some eye candy," he says.

"Well it's as you said, Sora," Riku starts as he exits the bedroom with a similar grin. "It's an island full of teenagers, and I'm not wasting any chances."

When his skirt chasing best friend is out of sight, it is Sora's turn to shake his head in mock disapproval. After gracing the contents of his messily organized luggage with one final glance, he then checks the last thing on his list and pulls open the drawer on his nightstand. Inside lies a pink envelope addressed to someone named Kairi in poor calligraphy.

He stares at the name for quite some time and it stares back, pleading to be taken with him. He briefly wonders if he'd have the opportunity to use it over the course of the entire summer, but on the slight chance that he did, he didn't want to waste any chances.

Without further hesitation, he takes the envelope and tosses it into his luggage.

* * *

 **Twilight Town, 8:45AM**

"Attention all passengers. Flight 109 to Kingdom Hearts Island Resort is now boarding rows one through ten. I repeat, flight 109 to Kingdom Hearts Island Resort is now boarding rows one through ten…"

As the same message was repeated in Japanese, a blonde-haired, brown-eyed teen keeps his eyes fixated on his portable video game console while everyone within a five-meter radius scrambles to their feet.

"Hayner," a voice calls.

"Hmm?" the blonde-haired boy responds, refusing to tear his bloodshot eyes off his little screen.

"Hayner," the voice calls again. The Hayner character only proceeds in button mashing like no tomorrow.

"Hayner!" the voice calls urgently. The gamer moves his headphones to uncover one ear with irritation.

"What?" Hayner asks, clearly annoyed.

"We're boarding," his companion responds calmly. Without losing focus on his game, Hayner gets up from his seat and languidly drags his luggage to the lineup. He doesn't even bother to react when his companion snaps yet another picture of him.

"You know, I'm not going to get much of a variety for my photography blog on this vacation if you're just going to play video games the whole time."

"Quit worrying, Pence. I'm not going to," Hayner assures, although his inability to look up from his screen bears little to no promise. "I'm sure you can capture me doing some pretty interesting stuff during my breaks—like when I take a dump or something."

"Hayner," Pence starts tiredly.

"I'm just kidding, man."

"I also advise you dress less like a fuqboi and more like a normal person," Pence suggests.

"What's wrong with my getup?" Hayner asks when he admires his camo pants and crewneck.

"Nothing," Pence replies. "It just isn't suitable for where we're going. I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure it's hot on an island resort."

"Only because I'll be there," Hayner says while popping his collar in a fuqboi-like fashion.

"You know, despite all the fun things this vacation has to offer, I hope that you'll find that there's a world beyond fun and games," Pence says. "You need to stop playing someone else's story and look at yourself as the player in your own."

"So you want me to have a summer of meaningless hookups?" Hayner jokes.

"Not that kind of player," Pence says mid-sigh. "And let's face it: you're not nearly smooth enough to pick up so many girls."

"Are you kidding me? I'm so smooth I bet people would want to wipe their asses with me." Hayner then twitches at his choice of words. "Okay, that came out wrong—"he says while turning away from Pence in embarrassment, but instead his knees collide with the luggage in front of him, effectively causing him to trip and fall.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry," the young woman in front of him apologizes. Hayner's first instinct is to grab his video game console five feet away, but a rather pale hand beats him to it.

"Excuse me, that's mi—"Hayner starts, but his words are cut short when he looks up at the owner of said hand. For the first time since his arrival at the airport, his full attention was given to someone other than his video game.

The young woman in front of him had one of the sweetest faces he'd ever seen. Her eyes were a vibrant green, her brown hair was tied into two neat braids, and her petite but curvy body was covered in nothing but an orange sundress that left much to the imagination.

"I believe this is yours," she says while giving him what was rightfully his.

"I, uh, gerblah," is what escapes Hayner's mouth. For a moment his hand grazes hers while retrieving his gaming console, so he drops it again at the warm and foreign sensation. He quickly picks it up and turns around. Despite her laughter, he was far too shameful to look the girl in the eye again.

"Smooth," Pence comments.

"Shut up."

* * *

 **New Twilight Airport, 9:12AM**

"Roxas, I'm scared. I-it's my first time."

"I know it is. That's why we're going to do this nice and easy, okay?"

"O-okay. Will you promise me that everything will be fine?"

"You might experience some minor discomfort, but I promise you that everything will be completely fine and that this will only bring us closer together."

"O-okay."

"Are you ready, Nams?"

A deep breath. "Ready."

"On the count of three then. One, two, three!"

On the third count, Roxas lifts his girlfriend off the ground by the waist and carries her into the airplane. A few seated passengers offer their applause while teenagers still waiting in line behind the entrance send him irritated glances. The one directly behind him rudely pops her bubblegum right in front of his face.

"Sorry," Roxas says sheepishly. "My girlfriend Naminé is agoraphobic and it's her first time on a plane."

"Tell it to someone who cares," says the young woman. As she shoves Roxas and Naminé aside, Roxas inwardly nicknames her Bubblegum Bitch. He takes his girlfriend's hand and protectively leads her down the aisle.

"Are you sure it's a good idea for me to go on an island full of teenagers?" Naminé timidly asks as she gets a good look at the variety of teens on display.

A teen with far too many tattoos and piercings to properly make out their face bobs their head to heavy metal music leaking from their headphones, another with an obnoxious looking horse mask shakes their head with their buddy in a unicorn mask, effectively bashing their noses together, and another… well, she didn't want to know what was going on behind that _special magazine_ of his that covered his crotch.

"This will be good for you, Nams," Roxas assures. "Don't approach it with a negative attitude. This is the final step towards curing your agoraphobia. If you can make it this far, you can make it anywhere!"

When the couple reaches their designated window seats, Roxas finds that Bubblegum Bitch has taken the seat directly in the middle.

"Um, excuse me, we're actually supposed to take 16B and 16C," Roxas informs as he shows her the tickets. Bubblegum Bitch slowly turns to look at him with her sunglasses still on and pops another bubble in his face.

"Oh, Roxas, you don't need to—"Naminé starts, wanting to avoid conflict as much as possible.

"No, hun, she needs to understand that we booked these seats ahead of time," Roxas argues. "Could you kindly move, please?"

"I want this seat," Bubblegum Bitch decides.

"But you _can't_ —"Roxas starts, but Naminé holds him back with a soft embrace.

"Roxas, it's fine," she assures with her cheek pressed against his chest. "Just let her have the seat. I don't mind."

"But…" Roxas pushes, but the pleading look in her eyes is enough for him to stop arguing.

He allows Naminé to take the seat closest to the window, as he wants her to have the most out of her first plane ride, and offers to lift her carry on and his guitar case into their appropriate cubby. When he plops down into his seat, he notices his girlfriend looking outside the window with a stiff posture. She nervously bites her lip and clenches her hands into two fists.

"Hey," he says softly, sensing her obvious discomfort. He reaches for one of her hands across Bubblegum Bitch, and if she was somewhat bothered by this gesture, she showed no indication.

"We're going to have the greatest summer ever," Roxas promises when Naminé turns to face him. "And I'm going to be with you every step of the way."

Naminé smiles and tightens her grip on his hand. "I love you."

"I love you too," Roxas whispers, and as he leans over for a kiss, Bubblegum Bitch decides that this is an appropriate time to blow another one of her bubbles.

Irritated, Roxas pops the bubble himself and pulls the string of gum from her lips and tosses it onto the floor.

* * *

 **Kingdom Hearts Resort Airport, 10:28AM**

"Did you really have to order all those drinks on the plane?" Xion asks as she and her lanky red-haired companion wait for their belongings at the baggage claim area. The redhead decides to remove his sunglasses, only to be overwhelmed by the amount of sunlight seeping through the glass windows.

"What time is it?" he asks groggily.

"Ten thirty in the morning," Xion answers with a chuckle.

"Well my philosophy is that somewhere in the galaxy—"

"—it's party time," Xion finishes knowingly. "I know, Axel. I've got it memorized."

"Then you've learned well," Axel says with a proud smile. "I just think it's only right to take advantage of the resort's drinking age."

"You know, sometimes I feel like I'm more of an adult than you are," Xion says while retrieving her first luggage from the carousel.

"Excuse me?" Axel asks, feigning offense. "I'm nineteen and you're like, what… seventeen? You're practically a baby."

"And you barely met the age requirement," Xion counters. "You're practically ancient."

Axel acknowledges her comeback with a grin. "Touché, but who's the one who actually gets to drink?"

"I hardly consider that an advantage," Xion says. "And here I thought two semesters in college would help you mature a bit. What do you major in again?"

"The Ups," Axel answers while slipping on his duffel bag. "You know, turning up, hooking up…"

"Fucking up," Xion adds cheekily.

"Hey!" Axel yells. "You know, I didn't have to ask you to come on this trip. I could've been a sore little winner all on my own."

"Aww Axel, don't be like that," Xion pleads with a pout. "And let's be real: you didn't have anyone better to take this summer."

"You're right," Axel quickly admits while throwing an arm around Xion's petite shoulders. "Now let's go cause all sorts of trouble."

* * *

 **Kingdom Hearts Resort: Disney Castle, 11:48AM**

When Kairi and Olette exit the limousine sent for them at the airport, they find themselves standing before their new temporary home. They stop dead in their tracks, mesmerized by the Disney castle's grandeur and elaborate architecture. It looked just like the stunning animations played at the beginning of the most recent Disney movies, minus the shiny logo and the Mickey Mouse shaped fireworks in the background.

"Whoa…" is all Kairi can manage.

"This place has roofs on roofs," Olette observes with awe. The brick foundation was light peach in colour, the roofs a royal blue, and the waving flags a deep, regal red. "And I totally wasn't expecting the moat."

"And the best part is that it's all ours for the entire summer," Kairi reminds excitedly. "Come on, let's go see what's inside! I bet we can see the entire island from up there!"

"Oh I hope there's a huge library inside," Olette confesses as they walk across the bridge towards the archway that granted access into the castle through a set of large double doors. "I really want to do well on the essay we were assigned for the summer."

"You're going to bring up homework? Seriously? We're on _vacation_ , Olette. Live a little! Hug a palm tree, live the thug life, eat some ice cream on the beach, and maybe get yourself a short-lived but undoubtedly hot summer love that you'll probably eat buckets of ice cream for after we leave," Kairi suggests with enthusiasm.

"Okay one, I have an issue with the amount of ice cream that this plan implies, and two, I find the latter very unlikely," Olette presumes. "If I was on a pH scale, I'd be level fourteen because I'm about as basic as they come."

Kairi immediately disagrees. "No you're not. That blond guy at the stop over at Twilight Town was totally checking you out."

"He was not!" Olette argues with a subtle pink tint to her cheeks.

"Let's agree to disagree," Kairi offers. "But you seriously need to cut it out with the chemistry jokes. We're at Kingdom Hearts Island Resort. This is going to be the summer of our lives! Let's not ruin it by living in the past, okay?"

"You're right," Olette admits. "We've worked hard this past semester. We can let loose a little."

"Exactly!" Kairi exclaims with an enthusiastic fist pump. With each step towards the entrance, she was getting closer and closer to getting through to her workaholic roommate.

"We deserve this trip. It's exactly what we need," Kairi insists when she begins walking backwards to face Olette. "Luxury suites with incredible views, fast passes to countless attractions, over the top parties and events, unlimited food, and most importantly, no—"

Kairi's words are cut short when her back collides with something—or, more accurately, some _one_ dressed in a Mickey Mouse mascot costume—that doesn't see her coming. The weight of the large head causes he or she to lose balance and eventually forces them to topple over the bridge and into the moat. Kairi and Olette both share a wide-eyed look before rushing over to the railings of the bridge with racing hearts.

From the dark below, a Mickey Mouse head floats to the surface, and just before Kairi places a hand over her heart as a sign of respect, another head—a human head—forces itself onto the surface with a loud gasp. Kairi's heart stops, but not because of relief—in fact, it's quite the opposite.

An unruly mess of brown hair that already appears to be defying gravity sits atop the human head, and Kairi knew only one person with such hair.

"Kairi?" asks the familiar—albeit childlike—voice. The Mickey Mouse impersonator tilts his head upward to look at her, but she no longer needs to see his face for confirmation.

"Drama," she greets.

 **tbc**

* * *

 **Fun fact:** I am a proud owner of all of Sora's Nerf guns.

 **A/N:** Well that was certainly familiar, wasn't it? However, I'm hoping that it was slightly different (if not simpler) in terms of writing and characterization; otherwise this redo would have been pointless lol. While my change in writing style was a major factor in this redo, organization and changed views were another.

The first Teenage Wasteland was admittedly a clusterfuck of ideas mashed together into one story. There was no knowing what could happen next, and that didn't exclude the writer. There was so much going on that I completely lost control of the wheel and drove the story to places I could no longer understand. It had no structure—something I now value, but am trying to work on with this story. I guess in a way it kind of works, since teenage behavior is so spontaneous and random.

Furthermore, because I started writing Teenage Wasteland when I was fifteen, my characters, although entertaining, behaved in a different manner, so I eventually stopped finding myself within them and could no longer bring them justice. I am now nineteen, and although society thinks I'm an adult now (LOL), I'll always be young at heart. With that said, some adult themes _might_ emerge later. Just kidding. Maybe.

You'll find that this Teenage Wasteland is much similar to the first, but hopefully with more structure. My fear is that I lack the imagination I had when I was younger, so I can't promise that it will be entirely better, but it's something I can work with. It's something that I hope you'll enjoy just as much as the first, if not more.

My writing style is still a little wonky from the condense scriptwriting I have to adhere to in university, so please be patient with my writing mojo!

Now a few things about this chapter:

Background information is still here! However, it's greatly condensed. I'd rather have readers reflect upon and interpret the personality and/or story of my characters rather than spoonfeeding all the information this time round.

Most of the characters have retained their original personalities from before, but with some exceptions. Sora is no longer, as Redeeming Endeavor put it, "Teenage Jesus", Riku isn't a total emo, and Xion will no longer be the factor that broke Sora and Kairi apart. When I looked back at my work, I thought that was a tad immature. I hope to make this variety of personalities fresh again, and that they'll still move you throughout their journey.

I hope you enjoyed the first installment of TW 2.0! Please kindly leave a review to share your thoughts and/or feels, I apologize for any grammar errors that I might have missed, and I'll see you all in the next chapter!

xoKyorii


	2. ohana

**Background Information:**

 **OTHER:**

 **MeTube:** YouTube.

 **Twitfacelr:** A mixture of twitter, Facebook, and tumblr.

 **Quickgram:** Instagram.

 **Destatiian:** The language spoken on Destiny Islands.

 **Call of Destiny (COD):** A mixture between the video games Call of Duty and Destiny, both of which are not owned by the author.

 **Alliance of the Ancients (AoA):** A MOBA (multiplayer online battle arena) video game that is typically played in two separate teams of five (top, mid, jungle, two bot). Essentially a parody of DotA and League of Legends.  
 **  
Teenage Wasteland:** The title of the reality show hosted by Selphie Tilmitt revolving around the events of Kingdom Hearts Island Resort as well as the members within the newly built Disney Castle. The show is currently in its second season and has episodes released weekly on the resort's website.

 **"Bold font":** Selphie's voice during confessional interviews, which take place in the left wing lounge.

 **DISCLAIMER:** I don't own the well-known saying from _Lilo and Stitch_. You'll know it when you see it.

* * *

 **PROJECT: TEENAGE WASTELAND  
II: ohana**

* * *

The memories, which are still so vivid in Sora's mind, flow like sand in an hourglass.

Four-year-old Kairi, timidly hiding behind the mayor of Destiny Islands; nine-year-old Kairi, throwing paper airplanes at his head whenever he fell asleep in class; fourteen-year-old Kairi, short-haired and collecting seashells by the seashore; sixteen-year-old Kairi, long-haired and bathed in sunlight while he caressed her cheek; two months later, sixteen-year-old Kairi, slipping through his fingers with only her lucky charm left in his hand; and now, nearly seventeen-year-old Kairi, staring daggers at him with her jaw slightly agape.

"What are you doing here?" is the first thing she blurts out. She outstretches her hand towards Sora and pulls him out of the water, but despite this kind gesture, he doesn't fail to notice the mortified look on her face.

"I, uh… I'm working here for the summer," he answers while shaking his head vigorously like a wet dog. It is then that the bulky Mickey Mouse costume explains itself.

"Oh," Kairi says (whines, really).

After realizing that she was probably going to be stuck with him for the entire summer, the air between them becomes downright awkward. The distance between them is no longer one meter, but one year, one world. It felt as if one second ago, Kairi thought that she had stepped into the greatest summer among summers, and in the next, she was faced with what could potentially be the most uncomfortable experience of her life.

Out of all the teenagers within the galaxy, why him, why now? Sora was supposed to be miles away. She made sure of it.

"Wait a minute," Olette says when she begins to feel the discomfort radiating from her roommate. "Could this possibly be… Sora? As in… _Sora_ Sora?"

"I don't recall my name having two parts nor being said with such emphasis, but yes, I am Sora," he says while outstretching his gloved and rather large hand with his signature smile. "Nice to meet you, er…"

"Olette Lovet," she responds while accepting his hand with both of hers. "I'm Kairi's roommate at Radiant Academy. I've heard so much about you from yours truly over there." Olette shamelessly makes a grand gesture towards her roommate.

"Is that so?" Sora asks, widely amused. Kairi, although red faced, turns away and begins walking up the grassy hill towards the bridge.

Olette is quick to catch up with her, and when she does, she whispers the following: "Kairi, I thought you said _cute_ ex-boyfriend Sora, not _hot_ ex-boyfriend Sora."

Kairi, who briefly considers jumping into the moat herself, offers her roommate the fakest of smiles. Beneath her pearly whites, a demon awaited. Sora, however, crosses his arms with a flattered grin.

"So you said I was cute, huh?" he asks when they reach the entrance.

"I never said that," Kairi immediately blurts out.

"Uh huh," her ex-boyfriend presses, clearly unconvinced. Kairi opens her mouth to respond but decides against it when another familiar and masculine voice interferes.

"Sora!" it exclaims. Kairi watches as Sora looks past her with his lips and arms open wide.

"Roxas!" he greets with enthusiasm. Kairi and Olette watch as the beheaded Mickey Mouse runs past them towards a blonde-haired young man with facial features much similar to his own.

"You're finally here! It's great to see you again, man!" Sora says while pulling the 'Roxas' character into a bro hug. "I was so psyched when I saw your Twitfacelr post about coming here. I missed you, man."

"Aww, I missed you too," Roxas teases while offering Sora a pat on the back. "I'm glad we get to spend our summer together in Kingdom Hearts freaking Resort. These next few weeks are going to be _legendary_."

"You know it," Sora answers while bumping a fist to his chest. "So I don't know if Axel already told you, but he won the sweepstakes too! Weird coincidence, huh?"

"Oh I know," Roxas answers. "We've been talking about joining the Battle of the Bands competition on the island. We just need to, you know, assemble an actual band."

"I think Riku and I can have something arranged," Sora suggests. "Besides, I've always wanted to be by your side while you achieved your dreams of being a musician someday!"

It is then that Sora notices the petite young woman hiding behind Roxas' arm. With her porcelain skin, platinum-blonde hair and glassy blue eyes, she looked almost doll-like.

"Oh, is this who I think it is?" Sora asks slyly. Roxas smiles a long-awaited smile.

"Nams, this is my cousin Sora that I've told you about," Roxas introduces. "Sora, this is my girlfriend, Naminé Sato." He then presents his girlfriend with a flourish.

"It's nice to finally meet you," Sora says while taking her frail hand in his. "Roxas tells me you're quite the artist."

"Th-thank you," Naminé timidly replies. "It's nice to meet you, too."

At the presence of a young lady, Sora then recalls the presence of two young ladies he had just rudely abandoned out of excitement. "Kairi, Olette, don't be strangers, get over here!" Sora then hollers. The two girls who seemed to be whispering to one another make their way over with friendly smiles.

"Roxas, you remember Kairi," Sora says when his brother and ex-girlfriend share a hug. "Girls, this is Roxas' girlfriend Naminé."

"Oh, how could I forget Kairi," Roxas says while sending Sora a knowing look. Sora merely scratches the back of his head sheepishly while the girls exchange handshakes.

"It's been a while, Roxas," Kairi observes. "About three years I think."

"Sounds about right," Roxas answers. "It's great to see you again." After offering Kairi a final smile, his eyes finally linger onto Olette.

"Olette, this is my cousin—"Sora starts.

"Roxas Akiyama," Olette finishes while moving forward to shake his hand. "I'm Olette. It's such an honour to meet you. I've heard your music online on MeTube. You're amazing."

"Thanks," Roxas replies with genuine gratitude.

"I know, he's great, isn't he?" says another familiar voice—one very familiar to Roxas in particular. "But if you ask me, his best friend is better. Much better."

The musician turns to confirm his suspicions and smiles when his eyes land on a lanky teenager walking towards him with bold red spikes and a bandana wrapped around his neck.

"Axel!" he exclaims as he excitedly closes the walking distance between them.

"Roxas, my man!" the redhead greets while going through the motions of their handshake.

"Naminé, this is my ever so famous side hoe that I've told you about, Axel," Roxas introduces teasingly. "Axel, this is the main hoe, Naminé." When his girlfriend sends him a disapproving look, he offers her an apologetic kiss on the cheek.

"It's so nice to finally meet you in person," Axel says while shaking the porcelain doll's hand. "Roxas doesn't ever shut up about you. Now I see why he never leaves New Twilight to visit." The pyromaniac then looks Naminé up and down with an approving nod, and the artist's cheeks turn a very visible shade of red.

"Hello," a timid voice then greets. From behind Axel emerges another petite figure sporting one of Axel's oversized sweaters, a spaghetti-strapped skater dress underneath, and short, jet-black hair cut more for comfort than style.

"You brought Xion," Roxas whispers. Naminé twiddles her thumbs uncomfortably. Judging by his reaction, Roxas clearly wasn't expecting her.

"Uh, yeah," Axel answers while awkwardly running a hand through his hair. "Thought it was finally time for a reunion."

"Hi Roxas," the 'Xion' character greets.

"Hey, Xi," Roxas says in a gentle manner. "Naminé, this is my good friend Xion," he then introduces without taking his eyes off his 'friend'. It is this gesture that mentally confirms Naminé's suspicions as she mechanically outstretches her hand.

Xion is not just a friend.

"Hey," a voice calls from the castle doors mid-swing. "Sora, are any of the guests here yet? They were supposed to start checking in ten minutes ago."

And when the doors open completely, Kairi too finds herself reuniting with a familiar face.

"Riku!" she exclaims while releasing her grip on her luggage and backpack.

At the sound of his name being called, the well-toned silver-haired teen walks out of the castle in a manner reminiscent to a model walking straight out of a beach ad.

Riku Kenbishi, the third pea in Sora and Kairi's once inseparable pod, then finds himself being pulled into a familiar embrace—a gesture that he willingly—albeit slowly—accepts and would make Sora very _very_ envious, had he not respected their camaraderie. After all, he had to consider the most important factor: it wasn't Riku that Kairi broke up with.

"Kairi," he then says. "What are you doing here?"

"I won the sweepstakes!" Kairi answers while playfully jabbing him in the elbow. "Why else would I be here?"

"Not sure," Riku replies truthfully. His eyes then lock with Sora's, who wears an expression that teeters between sadness and hope. It is then that Riku makes the connection that Sora and Kairi would be stuck on the same island, in the same house, for the entirety of two and a half months. He shakes his head at his discovery with a smile.

"It's just… coincidental is all," he adds. Then, in one swift motion, he throws an arm over both his best friends' shoulders and offers them an affectionate squeeze. "Wow, this summer is going to be just like old times, huh?"

While Sora leans into the familiar embrace with enthusiasm, Kairi squirms with discomfort.

"S-so anyways," Kairi starts. "What was that you were saying about getting accommodated?"

* * *

The interior of the Disney castle is nothing short of breathtaking as its exterior had implied. The architecture paid tribute to both medieval and modern styles but focused more on the latter. The walls, painted a creamy beige colour, were lined with elaborately carved columns that kept the groin-vaulted ceiling intact, and a long red carpet leading towards two sets of curved staircases covered the marble floors. On the second floor, classical paintings hung from the walls, two hallways led to two separate wings, two sets of elevators were separated by large double doors that led to what was presumably a ballroom, and in the center, a large, attention-seeking chandelier bathed the foyer in a warm, welcoming light.

"So Roxas and Kairi, huh? Small world," Riku says as he and Sora take their rightful places behind the desk to check in their guests.

"Yeah, although Kairi doesn't look too happy to see me," Sora admits while sorting through a pile of key cards.

"Well what did you expect?" Riku asks with a mild chuckle. "That she'd run into your arms without any effort?"

"Uh, yeah," Sora answers. "Preferably in slow motion—you know, so it lasts longer."

Riku fails to hold back a chuckle. "That's not likely coming from the girl that dumped you. We may be in the Disney castle, but this isn't Disneyworld, Sora. Welcome to the harsh and complex world that is reality."

"Ugh," Sora groans. "I just wouldn't know where to start."

"Let me talk to her and see what happens," Riku suggests.

"Do you really think I'll have a chance?" Sora asks.

"I think so," Riku answers.

Sora's eyes light up as if he were a puppy with a treat dangling above him, but the moment is short lived. No less than five seconds later, a shrill voice captures everyone's attention by the staircase of the right wing.

"Welcome to Kingdom Hearts Island Resort!" exclaims the all too familiar voice of TV personality Selphie Tilmitt. She descends the staircase accompanied by a camera crew and two young men: one with spiky hair and literal Prince Charming with lustrous blond locks.

"Oh no," Sora says when he catches Kairi and Olette stealing glances at Prince Charming and giggling amongst one another. "No no no no _no_."

"Sora," Riku starts tiredly.

"Is this really happening right now?" Sora asks as he watches Charming gracefully descend the staircase while running a hand through his disheveled surfer hair in slow motion. He sports a navy blue golf shirt, beige chinos, and a photogenic smile.

"Is that… Tidus Clearwater?" Riku asks when the familiar features set in.

"Yup," Sora answers through gritted teeth, seething at the display of male perfection. "Look at him. He's like every ex-boyfriend's waking nightmare."

Riku only rolls his eyes.

"I hope you all had a comfortable flight," Selphie says. "We're all very excited to kick start the summer of your lives. As you all probably already know, I'm Selphie Tilmitt. This is Wakka, editor of _Teenage Wasteland_. Expect to see him a lot as he'll be editing and filming footage for the show with our camera crew." Selphie then gestures to the teen with tanned skin and hair shaped into an upside down broomstick.

"Ey, how's it goin'?" he asks with a thick Destatiian accent.

"And this is Tidus," Selphie says whilst presenting Prince Charming. "Tidus Clearwater: star player of the Zanarkand Abes and younger brother of Terence Clearwater, founder of Kingdom Hearts Resort."

"Hey," Tidus greets with a playful salute. Olette and Kairi desperately try to hold back their dreamy sighs.

"I hope you've all gotten well acquainted with each other as well as Sora and Riku," Selphie then starts, "because you'll be spending a lot of time together this summer."

"Great," Kairi mutters under her breath.

"You'll all be sharing the same roof for the next few weeks, which makes you ohana," Selphie continues. "And what does ohana mean? Family, and family means—"

"—pulling at each other's hair and fighting over food," Sora answers proudly and logically.

"Um, no," Selphie says. "It means nobody gets left behind."

Everyone scoffs at the cliché answer.

"So don't hesitate to ask Sora and Riku for anything. They're responsible for tending to each and any one of your needs," Selphie explains.

"Each and every one of your needs," Riku calmly repeats with a subtle wink. While Kairi rolls her eyes with a knowing grin, Selphie tucks a few strands of hair behind her ear with a giggle, Olette blushes madly, and Roxas protectively pulls Naminé to his side.

Tidus then clears his throat to dissipate the awkward air. "Now, before you all go running off into your rooms, I would personally like to welcome all of you to the resort and invite all of you to join us for the welcoming party at the Atlantica water park. It'll be the first party of many, and it would be an honour to have our special guests there. Guest stars like Yuna Riel will be there, too."

"Oh my gosh, Yuna Riel? I love her," Axel gushes. Everyone then turns to face Axel with confused expressions. The redhead coughs and clears his throat. "I mean, you know, 'cause she's hot. I don't listen to chick music."

"Hey, watch it. That's my girlfriend you're talking about," Tidus threatens teasingly. Olette and Kairi slump their shoulders in defeat. Sora, on the other hand, tries to throw a fist in the air in triumph but Riku stops him midway. "I hope to see you all there. It was very nice meeting all of you. Enjoy your summer."

While Tidus makes his way to the exit, Selphie begins counting the amount of guests present.

"Huh, I was supposed to round you all up for introductory interviews, but I think we're missing two people," Selphie observes. She then begins scrolling through the tablet she retrieves from her Stella Fleuret purse. "Hayner Arundel and Pence Montague haven't signed in yet. Does anyone know who these guys are?"

Just as everyone is about to shrug, the entrance doors burst open.

"We're here!" Pence breathlessly exclaims. "Sorry we're late. _Someone_ here wanted to stop for corn dogs." He narrows his eyes at his blonde-haired, corn dog stuffed companion.

"What?" Hayner asks, his voice muffled due to the obvious corn dog currently in his mouth. "You know I can't control it. Once I see it, it's going in my mouth."

"Well I knew at least one of us was gonna roll like that," Axel confesses. "I just didn't think it would be this soon or this easy to discover who."

The corn dog immediately falls from Hayner's mouth. Selphie squeaks in disgust when the snack nearly rolls onto her six-inch heels.

"Okay, first of all, no," Hayner says. "And second, _damn_ , check this place out. Swanky."

"Fuqboi alert," Axel coughs.

Hayner's sights then linger onto a familiar looking brunette from the airport.

"Why hello," he says while starting his advances. Olette raises one of her eyebrows and grins nervously. "I think we've met before. I was the smooth criminal that stole your heart back at the Twilight Town airport."

Olette elbows Kairi as the redhead bites back a chuckle.

"I think you're mistaken," Olette argues. "I believe you were the not-so-smooth klutz that tripped on my luggage."

"All right, I get it," Hayner says, hands raised in surrender. "Playing the hard to get angle. I feel you. Just know that I'm a pro gamer, and this here—"Hayner then gestures to the space between them, "—is just another level for me, and I'm going to find a way to push forward, if you know what I mean."

"Yeah, sure," says Olette, her expression a mixture between confused and entertained. Pence, however, is downright tired of his companion's antics.

"Uh, all right," Selphie says with discomfort. "Now that everyone's here, you're all welcome to get settled in your rooms. Interviews will be held in the left wing lounge in an hour. See you all then."

"Man, I'm so pumped to be a TV celebrity for the summer," Axel says once everyone disperses with excited whispers. "I've already been practicing my good angle smile. How's this?" He then proceeds in turning his head and flashing a grin.

"It's great," Xion answers. "If, you know, you're going for a constipated look."

Axel groans.

"Hey, you guys work here, right?" Hayner asks Sora and Riku.

"Sure do," Sora answers proudly. "And you're Hayner Arundel. I've seen your gaming channel on MeTube. Good stuff, man. I never would've improved at Call of Destiny or Alliance of the Ancients if it weren't for you." Sora then offers him a bro shake, which he accepts with enthusiasm.

"Thanks man," Hayner says while shaking Riku's hand as well. "Glad I could help." Then, discreetly, "So can we get down to some business?"

"What do you mean?" Sora asks fearfully.

"I need the wifi password. Now."

* * *

"Why the long face, Kairi?" Riku asks as he escorts Kairi and her luggage to her room. A crimson coloured carpet runs along the hallway, accompanied by hollow knight sculptures and paintings encased in golden picture frames.

"We haven't seen each other in over a year. I'd imagine you'd be a little happier," Riku says.

Kairi hugs her right arm and sends Riku an apologetic look. "Sorry Riku. I'm just a little out of it. I'll be fine, I promise."

"This doesn't have anything to do with what happened between you and Sora, does it?" the silver-haired Adonis asks bluntly. When he sees Kairi tense from the corner of his eye, he knows he's caught her off guard.

Her once great relationship with Sora, now deduced to nothing more than awkward Skype conversations every two months or so.

"How are things with _you_ , Riku?" Kairi then says, obviously trying to steer their ship of conversation in another direction. "You're heading off to med school this September. How does that feel?"

"Kairi," Riku says knowingly.

The redhead sighs in defeat. "You know I don't want to talk about it."

"I don't see why it would affect you. You're the one who called it off," says Riku.

"For a _reason_ ," Kairi reminds.

"I hardly consider moving to a prestigious boarding school in Radiant Garden a valid reason," Riku voices.

Kairi crosses her arms and frowns. "Seriously? Sora and I dated for like two months that summer. We didn't stand a chance against the perils of the long distance relationship. I was just trying to make sure that none of us hurt more than we needed to."

"But would you deny that those were the happiest two months of your life?"

Silence. A victorious silence.

"Distance shouldn't come between love or years of meaningful friendship," Riku says. "I know that is so off character of me and if you ever tell anyone I said that I'll punch your left tit, but that's all in the past now. I know you've tried to keep in contact with us—me more than Sora, of course, but you shouldn't let the past bother the present or your future. It's summer vacation, and you're in the happiest place in the world."

 _That's debatable,_ Kairi thinks, but with a sigh, accepts Riku's words. She knows there's no arguing with him, and beneath his lush, silver hair, chiseled muscles and "God's gift to women" façade, a warm and sensitive heart beat that he revealed only to Sora and Kairi herself.

And besides, as much as she'd hate to admit it, Kairi had felt a familiar warmth in their three-way embrace earlier that satisfied a longing that she'd thought she'd cast aside.

"All right," she says, defeated. "I'll try warming up to him." Then, defensively, "but _don't_ expect me to get back together with him by the end of this summer. That's not happening. The furthest we're going is rekindling our platonic friendship."

"Sure," Riku says, although knowing deep down that she's wrong. "Well, this is you," he then says. He stops in front of a mahogany door, inserts Kairi's key card, opens the door, and presents her room with a bow.

"Thanks, Riku," Kairi says, and before going inside, offers him one more hug. "It's nice to finally see you again," she mumbles into his shoulder.

Riku offers her a light pat on the back before mumbling a swift "nice to see you too" and salutes her just as she closes the door. He throws his hands into his pockets, and just as he turns the corner of the hallway, he bumps into little Naminé.

"Sorry," Riku apologizes.

"Oh, it's okay," Naminé whispers timidly after some time. He then notices her luggage resting behind her.

"Here, let me help you with that," Riku offers.

"Oh, you don't have to—"she starts.

"I insist," Riku says.

"All right," Naminé whispers, and because she's so pale, the red tint to her cheeks is _very_ noticeable.

"So I don't think I've formally introduced myself to you," Riku notices. "I'm Riku."

"N-Naminé," the artist stammers. Without Roxas, she was pretty much hopeless with strangers.

"If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to ask me, okay?" Riku reminds with a mechanical smile. "I'm here to help make your summer more enjoyable," he says while inserting her key card into her door.

Naminé acknowledges his reminder with a nod. "S-sure. Thanks, Riku."

And when she walks into her room, Riku actively has to tell himself not to stare at the cute little ass subtly outlined by her short white dress. Riku may have liked to fool around, but he didn't fool around with taken women.

"Well if it isn't Riku," a voice greets.

"Roxas," Riku says. He watches as Roxas walks in front of him to shut Naminé's door.

"Good to see you again, bud," he says while clapping Riku's shoulder. The silver-haired teen only nods in acknowledgment. When Naminé is presumably out of earshot, Roxas cuts to the chase.

"So I heard that you like to have little flings," Roxas says bluntly. Riku doesn't protest. "Don't worry, I see where you're coming from," Roxas assures. "If my best friend got the girl after so many years I'd start to question the worth of relationships and have commitment issues, too."

"Where is this going?" Riku asks tiredly.

"I know we haven't seen each other for about three years, but we're still buddies, right?" Roxas asks. Riku nods. "So, buddy to buddy, can I ask you to lay off my girl?"

Riku crosses his arms with a smirk.

"You don't have to worry about that," he assures. "I have a whole island of teenage girls to disappoint."

"All right," Roxas says. "Sorry if I made things a little awkward back there. Just wanted to clarify some things."

"It's no problem. I'd see myself as a threat as well," Riku teases. "My man bun game is pretty strong."

Roxas rolls his eyes and scoffs. "I'll catch you later, okay? Hope you can join me and Axel for Battle of the Bands auditions next week."

"Yeah, Sora told me about that. You can count me in."

"Seriously?" Roxas asks excitedly.

Riku shrugs. "Sure, why not? I came here to make munny for med school. Wouldn't hurt to make more."

"Thank you," Roxas says with an appreciative bro shake. "I'll see you in the practice room?"

"You got it," Riku answers.

After Roxas bids him one final farewell, Riku makes his way down the hallway once again and catches Xion standing by her door with an expression reminiscent to a child stealing the last cookie from the cookie jar. His eyes lock with hers for a brief moment, but before he can offer his help, she scurries into her room with a squeak.

* * *

In the castle's left wing, Sora escorts Hayner to his room.

"So, as your fellow gamer, I bet you hooked me up with the best room in this place, huh?" Hayner asks.

"Uh, not exactly," Sora admits as he hands Hayner his key card. The gamer accepts it with a look of both suspicion and betrayal.

"Well, you see, since you were late, you and Pence were the last to sign in," Sora starts while nervously scratching the back of his head. "The system works on a first come first serve basis, and because you were too busy attempting to flirt with Olette—"

" _Attempting_?" Hayner repeats incredulously.

"—you were assigned the last room possible," Sora finishes.

"Oh I'm sure it can't be _that_ bad," Hayner says. He inserts his key card, opens the door, and an explosion of pink and princess gowns greet him on the other side.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me."

* * *

" **So, tell me a little about yourself. No need to be incredibly formal in your introduction. Just share some basics: hobbies, interests, maybe any events you're looking forward to?**

 **Kairi:** "Wait, how does this work? Is this going to be aired live or edited? Do we—wait, is it already recording? O-oh, sorry, ha ha… um, well, for starters, I'm Kairi. Kairi Hart. I'm seventeen years old, I'm originally from Destiny Islands, and… my dad's actually the mayor there. Um… what else was there? Oh, hobbies and interests, right. Uh, well I participate in a lot of athletic activities. I have a tier one gold belt in the Keyblade Arts, but because of my upbringing I'm mostly into swimming and volleyball, both of which I am the female captain of at—"

 **Olette:** "—the prestigious Radiant Garden Academy, which I am so fortunate to be studying in. I take pride in being a hard worker and enjoy learning about new things, so I'm really looking forward to learning and gaining more knowledge on this vacation. Knowledge is power, and I've always had a passion for—"

 **Hayner:** "—gaming. Gaming is my _life_. You name it, I'll play it. I'm most excited for the gaming competitions on the island. I might just find some worthy competitors, but those noobs might already know me from my gaming channel on MeTube. Online, I'm CuTiePie. What's that? You've never heard of me? I have over a million followers, lady. Get your shit straight. What? Seriously? I'm not allowed to—"

 **Pence:** "—swear, this is one of the best cameras I've ever used. I'm trying to get into film, documentaries in particular, but photography is one of my greatest passions. You can check out my work on my Quickgram account. My goal is to capture the truth with my lenses, both the good and the bad, and there's nothing that captures truth more than—"

 **Roxas:** "—music. Expressing what's truly within your soul through song? If you ask me, that sounds a lot more intimate than sex. W-wait, okay, maybe not _exactly_ , but… can you just cut that last part out? No? Ugh, crap… well, um, so I guess I'm super pumped to express my passion for music by competing in the Battle of the Bands competition with my best friend—"

 **Axel:** "—Axel Kiryu. Get that name memorized, ladies, 'cause you're gonna be yelling it all night. What am I looking forward to? Spending all my complementary munny and rockin' your world. Boyfriends, get ready, 'cause Mr. Steal Yo Girl is about to work his magic on the ladies. Wait, what else was I missing? Hobbies? Oh, right. Hmm. Is this show rated T? Yeah? Okay, I can't answer this."

 **Naminé:** *nervously whimpers beneath a blanket*

 **Xion:** Uh, hi… my name's Xion, I'm sixteen, I'm from Twilight Town, and… well, there's nothing special about me, really. I'm pretty basic. I know, great selling point right? But I honestly haven't really done much with my life apart from the ordinary. I wake up, I go to school, I eat, I sleep. What am I looking forward to? The highlight of my life pretty much. This is as good as it gets. I'm looking for an experience that I can consider—"

 **Sora** : "—extraordinary, which I consider this job opportunity to be. I'm all about fun and adventure, and what better place is there for fun than the happiest place in the world as a funtertainer? And apart from getting paid to do fun things, what am I looking forward to? Well, not to bear my soul to complete strangers or anything, but… there's… someone here I still kind of have feelings for, and I'm excited to win back their affections. Wish me luck!

 **Riku:** … Wanna make out?

After a not-so-discreet giggle, Selphie hops onto Riku's lap and demands Wakka to turn off the camera.

* * *

When Sora finishes unpacking the rest of his things (otherwise known as throwing the contents of his luggage onto the top bunk of the bunk bed), Riku walks into their room with a subtle but triumphant grin on his face and lipstick marks all over his neck.

"Seriously?" Sora asks incredulously. "We haven't even been working for more than three hours."

Riku merely shrugs and plops down on the lower bunk.

"So I spoke to Kairi," he starts.

Sora immediately moves to edge of the top bunk and hangs himself upside down like a bat to face his companion.

"And?" he asks eagerly.

"She just wants to be friends," Riku confesses. It's not a lie. It's what she currently _thinks_ , but she'll come around eventually, Riku figures.

" _Yes_!" Sora cheers as he tumbles off their bed and onto the floor. Riku looks confused.

"You're taking this a lot better than I thought," Riku admits. "You don't seem to mind starting from the bottom and working your way to the top."

"Dude, don't you get it? She doesn't _really_ want to be friends," Sora reasons as he rummages through his things for a certain envelope.

Riku tilts his head in sheer curiosity. "Care to elaborate?"

"Kairi's a girl," Sora explains.

"I'm quite aware of that. What does that have to do with anything?"

"Girls do that weird reverse psychology thing, right?" Sora asks. "It's like when they tell you that they don't want that necklace for their birthday but if you don't get it they'll beat the shit out of you with a struggle bat?"

"I don't know, man. Kairi may be a girl but deep down, she's our best friend. She's kinda like one of the guys, straight up and real, but with boobs." Then, just to clarify, "Girl boobs, not man boobs. That would be pretty disturbing."

The boys shiver simultaneously at the mental image.

"Anyways," Sora says while stuffing the envelope into his back pocket. "I'm off to get my woman back at tonight's party. It's a pool slash beach party right? That's how Kairi and I got together the first time. It _has_ to be fate."

"Wait, Sora, I don't think that's a good idea," Riku admits, but before he even has the opportunity to stand, Sora is already out of his reach, figuratively and literally.

Riku sighs to himself. "And the plot thickens."

 **tbc**

* * *

 **A/N:** Hey everyone! Sorry for the terribly late update. I was getting a little too caught up with some side projects that may or may not be released sometime soon. I hope this rather long chapter made up for it!

Also, I'm so glad to see so many familiar usernames! Thanks so much for the support guys! I hope I can make things slightly more interesting this time round. And to those of you who are new to TW, thanks so much for hopping aboard!

So, a little about this chapter. It wasn't really meant to push the story forward too much. It's intention was to know our characters and their relationships a little better, to reveal a bit of their backstory, but not too much. Things will slightly start to progress from here.

Special thanks to: **eleutheromaniac, MJP Smith, EternallySky, KurukiXV, acidic wrath, Bilbo B Swaggins, xXellesmeraXx, GemStarrk, Painted With a Palette, R Recollect, It's My Lucky Charm, becksterRES, Guest, Undefinedremedy, grandpagohan1, Guest, Flying By Wire, The V-Blade, Q-A the Authoress, snow x fairy, pinkchu, PsychoCerax, asb227, ioncewasspellbound, X-Crepuscule, Jared Someone, MelodicEnigma, I'mKairi, Hiddensecret564** and **Arc of Carona** for reviewing the last chapter! I apologize if I missed or misspelled any names. Just know your reviews are always appreciated.

I hope you all enjoyed the second installment of Project: Teenage Wasteland! Please kindly leave a review to tell me your thoughts and/or feels, I apologize for any grammar errors that I might have missed, and I'll see you all in the next chapter!

 **xoKyorii**


	3. all sorts of trouble

A/N: Two years later on Teenage Wasteland's anniversary, she returns with two fun-filled chapters! Ahaha… ha… ha…

 **Side note:** I did change a few things detail and structure-wise in the first two chapters. It shouldn't affect the following events too much, but I would advise giving them a quick read before moving forward. **  
**

* * *

 **PROJECT: TEENAGE WASTELAND  
III: all sorts of trouble**

* * *

On the third floor of the Disney Castle, Xion sits at her vanity table, preparing for the night's festivities.

Unlike Hayner, she was actually quite satisfied by the theme of her room. She had the fortune of having the Wonderland themed room with colourful décor and whimsical furniture all around, her personal favourite being the mushroom beanbag chairs. Atop her teacup shaped bed lays her outfit for the evening: a maroon skater dress with another one of Axel's oversized sweaters thrown on top for comfort.

A knock at the door suddenly distracts her from her task.

"Coming!" she hollers. She sets her hairbrush down and answers the door to find a concerned looking Axel on the other side.

"You can't go to that welcoming party," he says while barging into her room.

"What?" Xion asks, closing the door behind her with a mortified expression. "Why?"

"You know why, Xi," Axel replies. "There's going to be drinks and people and chaos. It'll be too much for you."

"But…" she says, obviously hurt. She wasn't hurt because he wanted to restrict her; she was hurt because he was right. "Earlier at the airport you said we could cause all sorts of trouble together."

"It was an in the moment thing!" Axel immediately reasons. "I'm sorry, Xi. I promised you I'd take care of you if I took you with me."

"And leaving me behind is going to do that?" Xion asks. "Being trapped at home in Twilight Town was one thing, but being trapped in this castle with thousands of attractions outside is another. This is far more cruel, Axel."

The redhead runs a hand through his spikes and lets out a conflicted sigh. It's Xion's turn to be right.

"I'm sorry, Xi," is the last thing he says before shutting the door behind him.

While Xion hangs her head low in defeat, Axel straightens out his shirt, clears his throat, and begins to make his way down the hall only to bump into Roxas turning the corner. The latter glances at the closest door behind the redhead and immediately puts the pieces together.

"How bad has it gotten?" Roxas asks solemnly.

Axel purses his lips. "Her lifespan's been cut in half since you've left."

Roxas' eyes visibly widen. "But it was already halved when I left."

"So you're picking up what I'm throwing down then?" Axel asks. Roxas curses under his breath and turns away in guilt.

"I'm sorry I stopped visiting," he confesses.

Axel chuckles half-heartedly and gives Roxas' hair a brief ruffle. "I appreciate that, but I don't think I'm the one you should be telling that to."

The blond's eyes then turn to the door behind Axel.

"Can you do something for me?" Roxas then asks.

Axel snorts. "I don't think you're in any position to be asking for any favours given what you just apologized to me for, but because I'm quite possibly the greatest being on this planet, I'm all ears."

"Can you check out any of the competition for Battle of the Bands at the party tonight?"

Axel nods. He knows what his best friend is getting at. "You're not coming?"

"Nah," Roxas answers while throwing his hands into the pockets of his jeans. "Nam doesn't really do parties."

"Right," Axel remembers. Then, after a brief silence, "You know what we have to do, right? About Battle of the Bands?"

Roxas nods in understanding as Axel salutes him farewell. The blond then makes his way to the door in the middle of the hallway and takes a deep breath before rapping his knuckles against the door. Moments later, Xion answers the door slightly teary eyed and mid-lecture.

"I can't believe you were actually going to leave me like that! You can be such a buttsack someti—oh," Xion then says, catching herself. "Roxas, I'm sorry, I thought you were—"

"Axel, I know," he answers. "Can I… is it okay if I come in?"

Roxas notices Xion's brows furrow ever so slightly before deciding the let him in.

"Whoa," is the first thing he says upon entering her room. "Your room is way cooler than mine. I have this Olympus Coliseum thing going on, but I personally dig these mushroom beanie bag cha—"

"Why are you here, Roxas?" Xion interrupts. Roxas nearly flinches at her sharp and abrupt delivery. He was never used to hearing it.

"I, uh…" he stammers. He then clears his throat before cutting to the chase. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry."

He sighs in relief when he sees Xion's eyes soften at the words.

"I'm sorry for not visiting Twilight Town as often as I should have," he then clarifies. "I didn't know how bad it got… and I know New Twilight is only a two hour train ride away, so I'm sorry for being a dick and not taking the time to get on it to see you guys. I got way too distracted with my newly found love with Nams, and I know that's no excuse for what I did, so… to make up for it, Axel and I are going to join Battle of the Bands and use our share of the prize munny on the treatments that your mom couldn't afford."

Xion crosses her arms with a small frown. "I appreciate the apology, but my friendship isn't something you can just buy, Roxas."

"I'm not trying to buy your friendship," Roxas assures. "I'm trying to buy you time. Time so that I can gain it back."

At this, Xion's frown slowly transitions into a thankful smile. Considering the amount of time she had left, she knew she couldn't use it despising Roxas for what he'd done in the past. Slowly but surely, the empty space between her and Axel on the clock tower becomes a distant memory. What mattered was that Roxas was here now and that the trio was in the same place at the same time for the next two months.

And if there was a silver lining in her condition, it was that she's learned that life (specifically hers) was too short to hold grudges.

"Thank you, Roxas," she then says softly. He outstretches his arms and she willingly crashes into the familiar embrace. "At least we have this summer," she murmurs into his chest.

Roxas' eyes slowly begin to tear up at her choice of words.

"At least we have this summer," he repeats wearily. Then, after a few minutes of well-needed comfort, Roxas turns their hug into a supportive one-armed gesture. "Now come on. Nams and I are watching a movie in the home theatre. You should join us! There's even a snack bar."

"Are you sure Naminé won't mind?" Xion asks. "I wouldn't want to intrude…"

"She won't," Roxas assures. "Now let's get this summer started."

* * *

At the Atlantica water park, the welcoming party is in full swing. The park has been transformed into an aquatic nightclub infested by thousands of half-naked teens mindlessly bouncing and gyrating to a catchy electronic dance beat supplied by DJ Demyx (and a line of other teen DJs looking to showcase their talent) at a large castle-shaped stage built just at the tip of the wave pool. Blue, purple, and green spotlights trap everyone in an underwater trance, and spherical cabanas resembling bubbles line up the sides of the large pool. Right beside the wave pool, Kairi, Olette, Hayner, Pence, and Axel sit at the stools of one of the many snack bars, the oldest of the group complaining about the lack of alcohol being served.

"They're not available at large gatherings for obvious reasons," Olette explains with her nose buried in one of her novels. "You're only allowed to purchase alcohol at certain stores if you're of age. Didn't you read that on the website?"

"I don't think he reads anything, Lette," Kairi points out with a giggle. Axel immediately sends her a dirty look to which she says, "Apart from girls' numbers, of course, which I'm sure he gets so many of."

Axel's lips then turn upward into an approving smirk. "Got that right. I like you already."

"I'm afraid you're not the only one who does," Olette mutters jokingly, earning herself an elbow jab from her roommate.

Axel merely chuckles. "I'm well aware of that. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to do some recon for Battle of the Bands."

After rubbing his hands together mischievously, the lanky redhead runs off past the seats of Hayner and Pence to begin his scouting mission.

"Did you hear that, Hayner? Axel's joining Battle of the Bands," Pence informs. The gamer, who is currently engrossed in his portable console, merely shrugs, clearly unimpressed.

"I also heard that Roxas, Sora, and Riku will be joining him too," Pence presses.

"So what?" Hayner asks.

"I'm sure they don't have someone that can work with polyphonic analog synthesizers," Pence guesses. "Not like you can, at least."

Hayner merely scoffs. "I have every intention to crush every noob this summer in every gaming competition on this island. Being in a band is not on my agenda."

Pence almost sighs in defeat until his eyes land on a familiar brunette sitting a few stools away from his best friend. His lips curve upward into a knowing grin.

"You know, chicks dig a guy who can play an instrument," Pence reminds. He catches Hayner's fingers twitch ever so slightly before resuming their standard movements.

"Yeah, we'll see," Hayner mutters under his breath.

At center stage, the current song fades into its last bar of beats before Tidus Clearwater takes the mic into his hands and addresses the crowd.

"Good evening all! Is everyone having a good time so far?" he yells charismatically. His, to quote Sora, "perfectly unkempt surfer hair" blows back at the overwhelming positive response of the screaming teens. "Good, that's what I like to hear! So that we can continue partying our first night away, I'm going to keep this welcoming speech short and sweet. For those of you who don't know me, I'm Tidus Clearwater, brother of Terence Clearwater: founder of this wonderful paradise that will be home to us for the next two months." More cheers sound at this.

"My brother founded this resort on the hope that together, teenagers could find not only new connections and lifetime friends, but also themselves through the many activities that this island has to offer," Tidus continues. "And who knows? Maybe you'll even find that special someone, too."

From their seats, Kairi and Olette giggle upon looking at Tidus' face on the multiple stage screens.

"Now, enough with the formalities," Tidus announces. "I would now like to introduce all of you to _my_ special someone, pop sensation Yuna Riel, performing her new hit single 'Real Emotion'!"

The lights dim, and the instant the words "What can I do for you" are seductively whispered into the microphone, the entire stage illuminates and the crowd goes wild.

Back at the drink bar, Olette and Kairi try not to notice Axel screaming like a wild fangirl while singing a horrendously off-tune version of the song not more than ten meters away from them.

"Hello ladies," greets a familiar voice. Kairi and Olette pause their head bobbing to find Sora heading towards them no longer dressed in his work uniform, but in a navy blue shirt and maroon-coloured swimming trunks instead. Given the amount of water being splashed from nearly every direction, Kairi tries not to notice how tightly her ex-boyfriend's shirt clings onto him. Growing up, he was a fairly scrawny kid—now, not so much.

"You know, you don't have to follow us everywhere we go, Sora," Kairi reminds to get her mind off the subtle display of his lightly toned muscles. "Besides, aren't you off work at six?"

"I consider my job as a funtertainer 24/7," Sora replies while taking the—now—unoccupied seat beside the redhead. Olette giggles at his reasoning and closes her book shut.

"I'm going to see what Hayner and Pence are up to," the brunette decides while hopping off her stool.

"Wait, what? No!" Kairi whines. She grabs onto the hem of her roommate's sundress in desperation. "Don't you dare leave me alone with him," she whispers.

"Sorry!" Olette apologizes before scurrying away.

"Buttsack," Kairi mutters under her breath.

"What was that?" Sora asks innocently.

"Nothing," Kairi assures with a fake smile.

"So, uh," Sora starts while rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "Can I get you a drink or something?"

Kairi eyes the nearly finished milkshake on the bar that she'd shared with Olette moments before and shrugs.

"Sure," she sighs. She did promise Riku she'd try to be civil. "Why not?"

Backstage, one of the cameramen catches Tidus and Yuna in a heated argument that is broadcasted on the multiple screens onstage, though inaudible. The teens watch in fascination as their favourite pop star sensation yells at the star player of the Zanarkand Abes, and by the looks of it, the former was winning. The fight ends with the latter storming out, the sound of a ringing microphone that was accidentally knocked over, and numerous gasps and "oohs" from the audience.

Back at the bar, Sora returns to Kairi with their orders and a sharp intake of breath.

"Yikes," the brunet says in regards to the backstage fiasco. "Wonder what that was about."

"Not sure," Kairi replies. "But I'm certain it wasn't supposed to be witnessed by thousands of people."

"You're right," Sora agrees while setting their orders down. "Let's not pry."

Kairi then stares at her order as a wave of nostalgia hits her full force. Strawberry milkshake, extra whip, no chocolate sauce, cherry on top with a side order of fries with ketchup and spicy mayo on the side. Back on Destiny Islands, at a diner open 24/7 called the Inside Scoop, this was her standard order. It was as if she had been transported to one of the booths with Sora's arm around hers and Riku sitting on the opposite side, shaking his head—albeit with a smile—at the display of shameless flirting before him.

"You remembered," is all she says as he slides the milkshake towards her.

"How could I forget?" is Sora's reply. Kairi then takes a slow sip of her drink and criticizes the taste.

"Hmm, good, but not as good as home," she wholeheartedly admits.

"No," Sora agrees as he watches her with his chin resting against his palm. "No it isn't."

Kairi then takes this time to notice how much Sora had changed in the last twelve months. His eyes still held their childlike wonder, but his face had matured to that of a young man. The baby fat that once made his cheeks full were now gone, and in its place were high cheekbones and a defined jawline. His arms, which used to look long in comparison to his once lanky frame, now had a hint of muscle forming. He wasn't defined like Riku, but he was certainly getting there. His sense of fashion had somewhat evolved, too. Gone were the loose T-shirts and shorts from his preteen days. In its place were more fitting and flattering articles of clothing that clearly distinguished him from the boy she remembered.

Kairi then berates herself for noticing such things. This was Sora she was talking about. Ex-boyfriend Sora. Broke-up-with-him-for-a-reason Sora. She couldn't go down this path of admiration again. She had to change the subject. Her eyes then drift onto the mediocre strawberry milkshake.

"You know, this reminds me of the time Ventus tried recreating milkshakes at home," Kairi recalls. "Close, but not close enough."

Sora smiles at the distant but fond memory. "And let's not forget the mess he made in the kitchen."

Kairi lets out a chuckle. "It took Aqua three days to clean every speck of strawberry residue."

"Yeah, he should probably stick to keyblade training," Sora suggests.

"Agreed," Kairi says.

Soon enough, Sora joins Kairi in the chuckle-fest. When the laughter subsides, Sora then places a hand in the pocket of his swimming trunks. The envelope was still there, waiting. He never thought he'd get the chance to _actually_ use it, so now was as good a time as any.

"So uh, Kairi," he starts nervously. "Now that we're on the same island and all…"

"Wait," Kairi pleads, knowing the direction of the conversation based on Sora's tone and facial expression alone. "Sora… you're… you're not seriously trying to get back together with me are you?"

Sora briefly recalls a time in middle school where Riku spun him on the tire swing so hard that he flew right off and had the wind knock right out of him the instant his body hit the ground. Kairi realizing his intentions almost instantly felt much worse than that.

"Wh-what?" he squeaks, the corner of his upper lip twitching slightly. "Psh, no. Why would I do that?"

Kairi scoffs in pity at his pathetic attempt to play the situation off. Sora always wore his heart on his sleeve. It was one of things she admittedly loved about him back then. "Sora, you're the most transparent person I know. Just be honest with me."

"W-well," he stammers. "I just thought… since you told Riku you weren't interested in being friends, I assumed you were doing that reverse psychology thing girls do when they want the complete opposite thing that they say they _don't_ want, so..."

"So you assumed that because I didn't want to be friends, I wanted something more?" Kairi asks. Sora shamefully nods. His ex-girlfriend merely sighs. "Sora, I'm going to be totally honest with you for your benefit. I don't want to lead you on or give you false hope, so I'm going to give it to you straight: I have no intention of getting back together with you. I literally just got here nine hours ago."

As an act of pure desperation, Sora then reaches for the envelope in his pocket. "But Kairi—"

Kairi is quick to hop off her stool and cut him off.

"I'm sorry, Sora," is the last thing she says before running off to grab Olette.

As he watches her retreating figure, Sora is reminded of the first time he let Kairi slip through his fingers on the beach of Destiny Islands. He hangs his head low in defeat as he loosens his grip on the piece of paper in his pocket. Riku was right. Kairi didn't like to play mind games like that, which was one of the many things that he admired about her. Growing up with her meant that he'd known that as well, but he was too caught up in his hopes of winning her back that he forgot what kind of person she truly was. He mindless twirls a French fry in between his fingers at this revelation before letting it drop onto the plate of—now—stale fries.

He'd been such a fool.

 **tbc**

* * *

Special thanks to **the ultimate kh fan, Tyjet Ansatsu, InfernalFox, If, clairejenine, DestinyKeyblader28, DarkGlobeFF, AnOldFan, theIrishWriter, Moonprincess016, xXellesmeraXx, Ayame Hikari, khff13, KurukiXV, Guest, Blade100, Guest, Crimson Daydreamer, MelodicEnigma, asb227, acidic wrath, It's My Lucky Charm, eleutheromaniac, R Recollect, I'mKairi, Flying by Wire, Q-A the Authoress, Hiddensecret564, snow x fairy, pinkchu** , and **Mr. T** for reviewing the last chapter and to **Redeeming Endeavor** for reviewing chapters 3 and 4 before their release!


	4. pilot

**PROJECT: TEENAGE WASTELAND  
** **IV: pilot**

* * *

In Wonderland, Xion wakes from her slumber with a half smile.

Her reunion with Roxas was everything that she wanted it to be, but as fun as the night's festivities were, Xion couldn't help but feel like a third wheel in between him and Naminé. The latter was nice enough to allow her to join them in the theatre and even offered to let her pick the movie, but Xion couldn't help but feel like she was getting in the way. She was always getting in the way.

It's then that she hears the hushed whispers by her bedside nightstand.

"Zoom in, this is good…"

"Closer?"

"Yes, closer, closer… yes, right there."

Xion quickly turns to find Wakka and a cameraman behind her nightstand with smiling but guilty faces.

"Seriously?" she asks incredulously. Xion then hops out of bed and begins hammerfisting the backs of both teenage boys while leading them towards the door. "I'm not even doing anything remotely interesting, and this is a _huge_ invasion of privacy! Get out! Get _out_!"

After a confident kick to Wakka's back, Xion finds herself crossing her arms at the end of the hallway as the two snickering boys run down the hallway with their camera and boom pole. After blowing a strand of stray hair from her face in exasperation, Xion suddenly becomes aware of her attire and blushes red in embarrassment.

It then dawns upon her that the world would soon see her in her chocobo pajamas.

Just as she comes to this embarrassing realization, Riku walks out of Hayner's room dressed in his work uniform (a turquoise golf shirt and beige shorts) with a garbage bag and some cleaning supplies in hand. He suppresses his laughter with a smile as Xion attempts to cover herself up.

"For the record, I think they're cute," he kindly assures.

"Thanks," Xion says through even redder cheeks and gritted teeth.

"Now come on," Riku says while tilting his head towards the end of the hallway. "Let's grab some breakfast with everyone before Sora scarfs everything down."

* * *

The dining hall, located just before the left wing lounge, was two storeys tall with High Renaissance style paintings of Disney characters lined up on the ceiling and walls, numerous crystal chandeliers above, plush, velvet chairs all around, and undoubtedly pricey silverware. At the end of the table, Selphie contently sips on her iced tea while reviewing Wakka's footage on her tablet.

"So before you all run off for more island shenanigans, I would like to take some of your time for a second round of interviews before the first episode of Teenage Wasteland is aired," Selphie requests. "No more than five minutes per person should suffice."

"So how exactly does this work?" Hayner asks through a mouthful of waffles drowned in syrup. "How often are episodes released?"

At the very sight of Hayner, Selphie suddenly feels the need to wipe her own mouth with a napkin before responding.

"Well, episodes are released on a weekly basis, and they're broadcasted on the resort's official website where they can be viewed by all. They're also shown on the resort's TV channel, which is available only on the island. Some events, however, are broadcasted live, like Battle of the Bands, for instance."

Roxas and Axel share a high five at this.

"Are we the sole focus of each episode?" Roxas then asks.

"No," Selphie assures. "You're all merely a segment of each episode, but as the castle's very first sweepstake winners, you do play a crucial part in the show. Now, if you'll all excuse me, I'm going to help set up the lounge for your interviews. Feel free to finish your breakfast and freshen up before coming to see us."

As Selphie takes her leave, Pence narrows his eyes in suspicion as she and Wakka join forces in the lounge next door.

"All right guys, here's what's going down," Pence says in a hushed whisper. "You have to be careful what you say in there. Teenage Wasteland is an entertainment-based show, so they'll manipulate the footage in any way they can to make our stories seem more interesting to the public. Take this warning seriously: don't say or do anything that could possibly make you look bad, got it?"

"Yeah," Olette agrees. "Remember, even our parents can access the episodes on the resort's website. And more importantly…" the brunette then gulps at the realization. "How we're portrayed could potentially affect our college applications."

Everyone rolls their eyes and scoffs at the 'C' word.

"Oh please," comes the nonchalant delivery of Axel. "No adult is interested in watching a bunch of troublemaking teenagers do stupid things. My professors don't even give a damn if I'm in class or not eighty percent of the time. Besides, what do you innocent kiddies even have to hide? Did you steal the last cookie from the cookie jar? Big whoop."

"Well _I_ personally don't have anything to hide," Hayner says, "but I'm sure Kairi over there doesn't want a whole island of teenagers to know about her little crush on Tidus Clearwater."

At this, Sora nearly drops the tray of fruits that he was kindly serving his cousin.

"What? I do not have a crush on Tidus Clearwater!" Kairi says defensively. "I just think he's cute," she admits (Sora's heart sinks at this). "Much like ninety-nine percent of the girls on the island, I'm sure."

Olette, Naminé and Xion all attest to this with shameless nods.

"What?" Roxas squeaks at the sight of his girlfriend agreeing with Kairi. "Even you, baby?"

"But he's not as cute as _you_ , sweetie," Naminé assures. Axel gags as his best friend leans in to plant a kiss on his lady's cheek.

"So now that this case is pretty much closed, can you not spread that around?" Kairi pleads. "What are we, in high school?"

Apart from Axel, everyone silently blinks twice at Kairi's question.

"Um, yeah," Hayner answers. "For the most part, we are."

" _Anywho_ ," Pence interrupts. "Let's all take precautions and _not_ accuse anyone of anything during the interviews, okay?"

Everyone collectively nods and disperses to prepare themselves.

* * *

Much like Xion, Kairi was more than satisfied with the theme of her room. After inserting her key card, she walks into her Moroccan palace style abode covered entirely in royal pinks, purples, and golds. Her circular canopy bed sat at the left side of the room, just beside the white balcony doors, and to the right, another set of double doors led to her walk in closet and personal bathroom. A lounge was situated in the center of the room, consisting of a golden coffee table and two velvet couches with elaborately carved frames, and above, a crystal chandelier bathed her luxurious room in a warm light.

Kairi then makes her way to her rather large walk in closet and selects a simple white top and high-waisted pink skirt for the day. In the middle of getting dressed, she suddenly hears her room door swing open. Her eyes widen in surprise. No one else but the staff had access to her room.

"Kairi," comes the worried and familiar voice of Sora. When he finds her in her closet, she luckily has all her clothes in order, but she still shrieks, nonetheless.

"What the hell, Sora?" she screams. "Have you ever heard of knocking? I could've been in my underwear!"

Her ex-boyfriend suppresses a laugh at this. "You act like I haven't seen that before."

He narrowly dodges the white sneaker aimed for his head.

"What was so important that you couldn't wait until I answered the door?" Kairi asks, breaths still heavy.

"You…" Sora starts, his voice wavering. Now that he really thought about it, perhaps he shouldn't have impulsively waltzed into her room, but there was certainly no going back now. "You can't be interested in him. T-Tidus, I mean."

Kairi immediately sees red. Of all the things that he could've chose to be concerned about, it had to be that? Her instinctive reaction is to first storm out of her closet and into her room where she calculates her response.

"First of all, that's none of your business, Sora," she then growls. "In the hypothetical case that I was actually interested in him, you still wouldn't have any say on who I can and can't be interested in. Second, why _wouldn't_ I be able to be interested in him? Because he's not you?"

Sora remains silent. It's like she'd taken the words straight out of his mouth.

"Did you really expect you and I to run off into the sunset the instant you saw me, credits scrolling upward and all? If that's the case, you've taken way too many volleyballs to the head," Kairi concludes.

"I just… don't have a good feeling about him," Sora says defeatedly.

Kairi crosses her arms with a frown. "Is that what we're going by here? Your instinct?"

"Please, Kairi," Sora pleads. "We're still meant to be."

Kairi turns away from him with gritted teeth and her fists now clenched. It was only her second day in paradise, and all Sora managed to do was keep her from enjoying it.

"Then why aren't we together?" she then asks amidst the silence. Sora is noticeably taken aback by this, but before he can respond, Kairi leads him towards the door.

"Get out, Sora," Kairi warns.

"But Kairi—"Sora begs while back-peddling.

"Get out!" she repeats while practically kicking him out of her room. Her door shuts with a loud _slam_ before Sora himself finds reality slapping him right in the face.

Riku had been right again, he thinks with a sigh. This may have been the Disney castle, but it definitely wasn't Disneyworld. This wasn't some fairytale where their love story would just happen through musical numbers and many expositional cues. This was reality, and it wasn't going to play nice.

Sora then runs a hand through his hair with a sigh. This was going to be a long summer.

* * *

 **"So in yesterday's introductory interviews, we all got to you know you better. Now, we all want to know what you think of each other. I know it's only been a day since you've all met, but we just want to get a feel of what kind of relationships you already have, some first impressions you may have had, and what dynamic you'll all have together. So, with that being said… Olette, Kairi won the sweepstakes, right? Why did she choose to take you with her? What's your relationship with her?"**

Olette squirms in discomfort and she calculates a safe answer for the cameras. Pence was right: they really would try and pit everyone against each other as the price for entertainment.

 **"No need to overthink, Olette. Just let out the first thing that comes to mind."**

"Um… well, Kairi's my roommate back in Radiant Garden Academy. It's a boarding school for, um… elite minds and talents," she says carefully. "We've known each other for about eight months now and she's one of the greatest friends I could ever ask for."

 **"That's nice. Yesterday Kairi told us that she was the mayor's daughter back on Destiny Islands. Can you attest to this? And did you know that before she became your roommate?"**

"Um, yes," Olette answers. "She really is the mayor's daughter. And yes, I was told who my roommate would be before the semester started."

 **"Interesting. And how did you react when you found out that you'd be rooming with the daughter of a political dictator? Were you nervous, excited?"**

"The news certainly intimidated me at first and made me somewhat nervous," Olette admits. "But when I met her, it was a friendship bound from the getgo. Kairi's one of the most down to earth, supportive, hard working, and humble people you'll ever come across."

 **"So you were glad that she didn't end up being a spoiled brat with her rather wealthy upbringing? Oh, and for editing purposes, we ask that you repeat part of the question before answering."**

"Oh, of course," Olette says with an understanding nod. "No, Kairi totally didn't end up being a spoiled brat despite her wealthy upbringing, in fact she—wait," Olette pauses, realizing the trap that Selphie had led her into all too late. "Wait, um… is there a chance we can repeat that last part?"

 **"Nope. I think we got what we've needed anyway. Thanks Olette!"**

The brunette hangs her head low in shame as she exits the lounge.

 **"So, Roxas and Naminé. How long have you two been together?"**

"Ten and a half months and counting," Roxas answers dreamily. He places an arm around his shaking girlfriend to reassure her of his presence and support.

 **"And how exactly did you two meet?"**

"Oh," is all Roxas manages to say towards the rather personal question. Naminé squeezes his hand and nods: a gesture he has long associated with the words "it's okay". After clearing his throat, Roxas formulates his answer. "Well, you see, Naminé's got agoraphobia, so for most of her life she's been living in different… institutes."

"U-Until I met Roxas in New Twilight, that is," Naminé adds. "I never would've gone outside if it weren't for Roxas."

At this, Roxas squeezes her affectionately.

"I was assigned to her institute for volunteer hours," Roxas continues. "But even after they were completed I just couldn't stop visiting and caring for her. She's a charmer, this one."

Naminé blushes as Roxas plants a quick kiss on her forehead.

"And now she lives with my aunt in the neighbourhood next to mine," Roxas informs. "We couldn't be any happier."

 **"That's cute. Does have anything to do with your success as an online musician? Your muse, perhaps?"**

"You know, she's actually the one who manages my MeTube account," Roxas admits. "She's the whole reason I got into the online music business! She videotaped me one day and, unbeknownst to me that night, she created an account and posted it online."

"By the following morning, he had over twenty thousand views, and we've just kept growing from there," Naminé announces. "Roxas is incredibly talented, and I just wanted the whole world to see it."

"Aww, baby," Roxas coos. "My girl is also insanely talented. You should check out her illustration gallery online."

"Roxas…" Naminé mumbles in embarrassment.

 **"Mhm, I'll be sure to do that. So, uh… how exactly does the uploading process work for your MeTube account?"**

Roxas begins to rub the back of his head with a sheepish grin. "I'm not going to lie, it's a tiring process, but it really is a labor of love. We actually have a small studio set up in my garage—"

 **"Sorry to cut you off, Roxas, but it seems our five minutes are up. I think we have everything we need though, thank you!"**

"You're, uh… welcome, I guess?" Roxas squeaks.

 **"Axel Kiryu."**

"What do you got for me, babe?" the pyromaniac confidently asks while leaning back on the couch.

 **"It says here that you won the sweepstakes. Why did you choose to take Xion with you? What's your relationship with her?"**

"Xion… Xion's like my little sister," Axel answers. "And as her honorary older brother, I just wanted to show her the good life, you know? Protect her from the bad guys, tease her about everything, cause some trouble here and there?"

 **"So do you love her?"**

"Well yeah, obviously I love her," Axel says. "But like a sister, you know?"

 **"Thanks Axel. I think we got it."**

"I totally fucked up didn't I?"

 **"So, Hayner…"**

"YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH!" the gamer immediately yells in a battle cry-like fashion. Beside him, Pence merely hides his face in his hands.

 **"Why hello Riku."**

"Did you call me down here for another make out session or are you actually going to interview me this time?" he asks haughtily with a seductive smirk.

 **"Interview first, make out after. So… based on your interactions, it seems to me that you and Kairi have known each other for quite some time prior to yesterday's introductions."**

"Yeah, Kairi's one of my closest friends," Riku informs. "We grew up together on Destiny Islands. We probably could've come from the same womb, to be honest."

 **"So she's like a sister to you?"**

"Sure," Riku answers.

 **"Did you ever… you know, have a crush on her?"**

"..."

 **"Sorry, let me rephrase. Did you ever find her cute?"**

"Well yeah she's cute," Riku admits. "Any guy would have to be blind not to find her cute."

 **"Mhm. And what do you think of Naminé?"**

"That's an awfully random question to ask," Riku says with eyes narrowed in suspicion. "And I'm pretty sure Roxas would rip my dick off if I answered that question."

 **"Well we can't have that happen. You kind of need it for… other things."**

"I certainly do," Riku admits suggestively.

"You guys are disgusting," Wakka voices from behind the camera.

 **"Just shut up and leave, Wakka."**

* * *

In the practice room, located on the third floor of the west wing, Roxas and Axel await the arrival of their two new band members. Riku is the first to arrive with a triumphant smirk on his face.

"Why the hell are you in such a good mood?" Axel questions from behind the drum set. "Didn't you just finish your interview with that crazy chick?"

"Yes indeed," Riku answers as he pulls the bass strap over his shoulder. "And let me tell you, it was very… informative."

"Aww yeah, my man!" Axel cheers as he offers their new bass player a high five. Roxas merely rolls his eyes at Riku's antics.

"Anyway, before you arrived, Axel and I were just thinking of names for our band," Roxas says, getting right down to business.

"Oh yeah," Axel says as if he'd just remembered. "I came up with a really good one."

"No he didn't," Roxas interjects.

"How does 'The Beatless' sound?" Axel asks excitedly. Riku and Roxas slap their foreheads simultaneously at the suggestion. It is then that their lead guitarist finally decides to walk through the door and make his appearance.

"What's gotten you in a slump, Sora?" Roxas asks with genuine concern. His cousin languidly makes his way over to the guitar and straps on without uttering a single word.

"I'm guessing the talk with Kairi didn't go well," Riku guesses.

"Not in the slightest," Sora mutters darkly.

"Dude, I know she's hot and all, but who cares?" Axel asks inconsiderately. "You're in a band now. Auditions are at the end of this week, and when we earn our spot in the competition, you'll have a whole island of girls to choose from!"

"Not the one that matters, though," Sora replies melancholically. In the few moments spent in a depressing silence, the boys begin to hear muffled bickering in the hallway. Out of sheer curiosity, Sora goes to answer the door only to have Hayner forcefully shoved inside by Pence.

"No!" the gamer cries. "No, you can't make me!"

"Be nice!" is the last thing his best friend says before shutting the door in Hayner's face. "And you can have your gaming systems back when you're done practice!" comes the muffled and fading voice of Pence who was presumably halfway down the hallway. After sighing in defeat, Hayner turns around to face four equally confused teenage boys.

"Hey," he greets awkwardly.

"Um… what was that about?" Roxas asks.

"I, uh… Pence thought…" Hayner mumbles. "I can work with polyphonic analogue synthesizers," he finally blurts out. While Sora and Roxas smile excitedly at the news, Axel finds himself in the middle of doing the math while Riku questions the skill of their potential new band member.

"Can you fully program them too?" he asks.

Hayner merely throws his hands into the pockets of his camo pants and shrugs nonchalantly. "In my sleep, with my tongue."

"Then welcome to the band!" Roxas announces. "You can set up your stuff right beside Sora. While you were gone, we were just coming up with potential band names. Got any ideas?"

"I have one—"Axel starts.

"No he doesn't," Roxas insists.

"Can't say I have any," Hayner admits as he sets up a stand in between Sora and Riku.

"I think it should be representative of who we are," Roxas suggests to get the ball rolling. "With that being said, I think we should first figure out how we want to market and portray ourselves. How do you think we should sell ourselves?"

"Fun!" comes Sora's immediate answer.

"Badass," Hayner says.

"Charming," Riku suggests.

"I'd say sexy, but that was ruled out the instant Hayner walked through the door," Axel teases with a snicker. As the subject of Axel's scorn begins to walk towards the doorway, the lead singer pleads for him to stay.

"No Hayner, stop. We need you. We promise we'll be nice. We'll _all_ be nice, right Axel?" Roxas asks through gritted teeth.

Axel groans and nods noncommittally.

"So how do we put all those traits into one name?" Sora questions.

"We don't," Riku answers. "I don't think we need a long name that expresses all the different traits we all possess. I think we need one that's concise and describes us all collectively."

"Good call, Riku," Roxas says. "So, uh… what do we all have in common?" Before the redheaded drummer even opens his mouth, Roxas is quick to shut him down. "And no, Axel, we are _not_ calling ourselves The Dicks."

Axel merely crosses his arms with a childish huff.

"Oh, I got it!" Sora exclaims. All the boys turn to face him with hopeful expressions. "We're all here for a reason, right? We've got to be. Riku, you promised your family you'd help pay for med school, right?"

"Um, yeah?" Riku answers, not knowing how it could possibly relate to Sora's train wreck of thought.

The brunet then points an accusing finger at their newest member.

"Hayner, I'm assuming you promised Pence you'd try to bond with us in exchange for your gaming systems, right?"

"Yeah," Hayner answers, eyes skittish.

"Roxas, I promised you that I'd be right by your side on your journey to stardom," Sora reminds. "And apart from the publicity and the satisfaction of achieving your dreams, I'm sure you have other reasons for being here, too."

Roxas offers his cousin a grateful smile before it fades into a neutral expression. He did have another reason for being here, and she was just a few doors away in the east wing.

"And Axel, I'm sure you have other reasons for being here apart from the girls," Sora concludes.

"That's right," Axel admits in a serious tone. He and Roxas lock eyes for a split second and share an understanding nod.

"All right, so what's your point?" Hayner then asks tiredly. The sooner he got this practice over with, the better. "We've all made promises. Hooray for us."

"That's exactly what I mean though," Sora says. "We've all made promises, so why don't we hold true to those promises and call ourselves The Oathkeepers?"

Amidst the contemplative silence, Hayner is the first to speak up.

"That's the stupidest fucking name I've ever heard."

* * *

At breakfast the following day, Sora excitedly pushes the double doors open with a bullhorn in hand.

"Good morning everybody!" he yells. Some feedback causes everyone to cover their ears from the obnoxious ringing.

"What the hell, Sora?" Kairi asks angrily.

"Guess what I have set up in the theatre," Sora says.

"If the answer isn't an all girl orgy, then I'm out," Axel immediately decides.

"Uh, no," Sora answers while scratching the back of his head. "Sorry man. A-Anyways, what I meant to say was that Selphie gave me a sneak peak at the first episode of Teenage Wasteland before it airs at noon! Would you all care to join me?"

Everyone in the dining hall is in the home theatre within seconds.

"This oughta be good," Axel says excitedly. "I hope they used my good side."

"I just hope they captured who we truly are," Roxas voices.

The instant Sora hits play, everyone falls silent as the voice of Selphie Tilmitt blares through the speakers.

 **"Good afternoon Kingdom Hearts Resort, and welcome to this season's first episode of Teenage Wasteland! Teenage Wasteland offers the inside scoop on the island's hottest events, latest news, and our personal favourite, tasty drama!"**

An exterior of the Disney Castle is then shown, and Kairi and Olette hook arms in anticipation.

 **"As you all know, our newly built and magnificent Disney Castle, located right at the heart of the resort, is now home to our eight lucky sweepstakes winners. Everyone, I would like you to meet Kairi, Olette, Roxas, Naminé, Pence, Hayner, Axel, Xion, and two of their very special helpers, Sora and Riku!"**

"So far so good," Roxas says as he throws an arm around his girlfriend with an approving nod. After a flattering headshot of each winner is shown, the show cuts right into the introductory interviews.

 **Roxas: "Music. Expressing what's truly within your soul through song? If you ask me, that sounds a lot more intimate than sex. W-wait, maybe not exactly, but… can you just cut that last part out? No?"**

Roxas slowly pulls his hoodie over his head as everyone in the theatre releases their giggles.

"Dude," Axel snickers with a playful arm jab.

"Shut up," the blond mutters.

 **Axel: Axel Kiryu. Get that name memorized, ladies, 'cause you're gonna be yelling it all night.**

"And that, kiddos, is how it's done," Axel says haughtily while pulling at his non-existent collar.

 **"After a second round of interviews, we really got to know our winners a little better. Olette and Kairi are roommates slash close friends at Radiant Garden Academy: a boarding school for the elite, but just how close are these friends?"**

 **Olette: Kairi's my roommate back in Radiant Garden Academy. Yes, she really is the mayor's daughter, but her rather wealthy upbringing has somewhat made her a spoiled brat.**

Jaws (specifically Kairi's) drop at this. Olette shamefully buries her face in her hands. She knew that the post-production crew would somehow manipulate the words that Selphie had tricked her into saying into the complete opposite of what she intended.

Footage of Sora carrying food over to Kairi at the Atlantica Water Park and Kairi kicking Sora out of her room follow suit to make it appear as if she were yelling at, as Selphie had so generously put it, "the help". Sora cocks his head to the side in confusion.

"And so it begins…" Pence mumbles.

 **"Axel prides himself in being a big, bad playboy, but has this player finally reached game over?"**

 **Axel: Xion… I love her. I just wanted to show her the good life, you know?**

Axel and Xion's eyes widen as footage of Axel leaving Xion's room the night of the welcoming party is shown. The camera cuts back to Xion laying on her bed with a half smile, then to a haphazard Axel who buttons up his shirt in the hallway.

" _Dude_ ," is all Roxas manages to say disapprovingly.

"That is _not_ what it looks like," Axel swears.

 **"Is Hayner mentally stable?"**

Footage of Hayner hitting his chest and letting out a battle cry in the lounge is then shown alongside Pence with his face in his hands.

"Okay, you did that to yourself," Pence informs before his—now—paralyzed best friend even has a chance to act irrationally.

 **"Roxas and Naminé have been dating for almost a year, but is Roxas growing tired of their love?"**

 **Roxas: Well, you see, Naminé's got agoraphobia, and I'm not going to lie… caring for her… it's a tiring process.**

" _What?_ " Roxas screams. "I was talking about my recording process, not Naminé!"

Axel merely scoffs. "And you thought _I_ was messed up?"

 **"Will temptations rip them apart?"**

Footage of Riku bumping into Naminé on the day of everyone's arrival is then shown, but the shot is angled in a way that makes it appear as if the two were kissing in a discreet corner of the hallway.

 **"What do you think of Naminé?"**

 **Riku: Well yeah she's cute. Any guy would have to be blind not to find her cute.**

Beside him, Riku feels Roxas' blood boil.

"Now Roxas," Riku starts, but before he can get another word out, Selphie delivers the final blow.

 **"But little does Naminé know that she has some competition for Riku's affections…"**

 **Sora: Apart from getting paid to do fun things, what am I looking forward to? Well, not to bear my soul to complete strangers or anything, but… there's… someone here I still kind of have feelings for, and I'm excited to win back their affections! Wish me luck!**

A slow motion shot of Riku giving Sora a noogie in the hallway is then presented, both with clear smiles on their faces. Roxas immediately pauses the video before it can go any further, and amidst the awkward silence, Sora is the first to find his ability of speech.

"Whoa… this show is good," he says dumbly.

Then chaos ensues.

 **tbc**


	5. and the plot thickens

**PROJECT: TEENAGE WASTELAND  
V: and the plot thickens**

* * *

In the home theatre of the Disney Castle, the residents appear to be at war with one another.

"Dude, I thought we already had this discussion!" Roxas yells while pointing an accusing finger in Riku's general direction. "I told you to lay off my girl and you end up smooching with her in the hallway? I thought we were bros!" He then pulls his girlfriend to his chest in a protective fashion. "What else did he force you into, baby? I'll kill him!"

"I didn't force her into anything," Riku explains in a calm, cool, and collected manner. "She bumped into me in the hallway and I just asked if she wanted help with her bags. The cameras just happened to be at a convenient angle at the time."

In Roxas' arms, Naminé nods fervently in agreement. Hayner merely scoffs.

"That's not even the part that shook me," the gamer announces. "I knew Sora and Riku were close, but not _that_ close."

Sora's jaw drops at the false accusation. "Seriously? You all know I was talking about Kairi when I said that I still had feelings for someone here, right? Riku and I just have a very open bromance!"

Kairi can't help but turn red at Sora's statement, her reason for doing so teetering between embarrassment and flattery. Her ex-boyfriend's delivery was so nonchalant, so certain, so sure. It was almost like breathing for him, fully admitting his affections for her.

"What about Xion and Axel though?" Hayner then brings up. "I had no idea they were actually together!"

The two in question look at each other with incredulous expressions.

"That's because we're _not_ together," Axel explains.

"Yeah, Axel's more like a brother to me," Xion confirms while pulling on her elbow.

"I think I'm more surprised about how little Naminé had it in her to come onto Riku though," Axel admits, diverting the attention back onto Roxas' shaking girlfriend.

"I did not come onto him!"

"She did not come onto me!" come the simultaneous responses from both parties involved.

"All right guys, calm down," Kairi advises with subtle hand gestures. "This is exactly the kind of thing Pence and Olette warned us about. Us turning against each other? This is exactly what they want."

Axel nods in agreement. "Princess is right. This wasn't our doing."

Sora doesn't fail to notice the slight twitching of Kairi's lip at Axel's word choice.

"It's theirs," the pyromaniac finishes, pointing an accusing finger at two figures by the theatre doorway. As they slowly make their way to the front, Selphie and Wakka applaud themselves for a supposed job well done. The sound feels like a slap in the face for each victim.

"Guilty as charged," Selphie wholeheartedly admits. "Wasn't that just riveting? The editing was astonishing."

Roxas nearly gags. "If by astonishing you mean astonishingly horrible. That didn't capture who we were at all."

Amidst the murmurs and nods of agreement, Selphie crosses her arms.

"Well I don't know about Hayner. I'd say he was bang on," the reporter voices.

"Hey!" the gamer exclaims, clearly offended.

"So is there a way to like… un-air what we just saw?" Sora asks innocently.

Selphie merely wags her index finger in a teasing fashion. "No can do. It's already on the island website."

"Then can't we opt out or something?" Roxas desperately suggests. "This isn't what we signed up for!"

"Oh, but I'm afraid it is," Selphie says as she swipes through each of their signed contracts on her tablet.

"Well that's not fair!" Axel whines rather childishly. "No one actually reads all that crap!"

Kairi then sends her bookworm of a roommate a hopeful look only to have her raise her hands in surrender.

"It was twenty pages long," the brunette reasons. "I only got to eighteen before giving up."

"So what the heck are we supposed to do?" Sora whines. "Have the whole island think I'm romantically affiliated with Riku and just be okay with it?"

"That's the way it has to be, Sora," Kairi says with a heavy sigh. "Now why don't we all go have some fun and get our minds off this? We live in a digital age. No one's going to remember any of this in the next two days. It's just some stupid TV show."

While Selphie places a hand to her chest, clearly offended by the redhead's rather bold statement, the rest of the victims nod in agreement.

"Okay, princess," Axel says. "Sounds like a plan."

"Can you not call me that?" Kairi asks through gritted teeth. Axel merely shrugs, knowing that any promises he makes will be empty ones.

"Go have fun," Naminé says as she shoves her boyfriend forward encouragingly. "I'll be okay here."

"Are you sure, Nams?" Roxas asks with a smile that teeters between pity and excitement.

"I don't want you spending every moment of this vacation trapped inside this castle," Naminé reasons. Xion squirms uncomfortably at the similarity of their situations.

"Now go, have fun," she presses.

"What about you, Xi?" Roxas asks. "Do you want to come?"

From behind Roxas, Xion catches Axel looking at her with pursed lips and a neutral expression. With much regret, she kindly declines Roxas' offer.

"I… I shouldn't," she says dejectedly. "Naminé and I will be okay here. We can check out the spa, right?"

Naminé offers Xion a kind nod to assure Roxas that everything could and would run smoothly on their end.

"All right," Roxas says half-heartedly. "I'll be back soon, okay?"

"What about you, Hayner?" Pence asks, eyes hopeful. "Will you be joining them?"

"Nah," comes the expected reply. "I've got to practice for the upcoming Alliance of the Ancients competition this week. Peace out hoes."

Pence sighs as his best friend exits the premises with nothing but a peace sign in the air.

* * *

On the west sector of the island, located right beside the Disney Town Shoppes, sits The Pier amusement park built atop the island's largest steel pier complete with delicious—albeit incredibly oily—funnel cakes, countless prize stands galore, and thrilling rides that could send almost any teen to the brink of cardiac arrest. As the island's largest amusement park, The Pier reached its maximum capacity almost daily, but as the island's beloved sweepstakes winners, the residents of the Disney Castle were admitted with their fast passes without question.

As Kairi, Olette, Axel and Roxas make their way down the fast lane for one of the park's busiest hanging coasters, teens in the slow lane begin whispering amongst themselves whilst pointing in the group's general direction.

"The hell are you all looking at?" Axel asks pointedly, catching a few gossipers off guard.

"N-nothing," one of them stammers.

"Do you mind cutting it out then?" Kairi asks with a sweet tone. "It's not polite to stare."

"Sure," the same teen stammers. Then, after a subtle a cough, "Your highness."

Kairi freezes and turns to look at the group of snickering teenagers.

"What did you just say?" she asks, face impassive.

Another teen, one more pimplier than the one from earlier, scratches the back of his head with a smirk. "Nothing."

Angered at the boy's lack of honesty, Kairi walks towards him with abrupt strides.

"Look, if you have something to say about me, you should say it to my face," she deadpans. Teens surrounding the boy in question step back and "ooh" as if their friend had just been called to the principle's office.

"Kairi," Roxas says with a worried tone. Now he remembered why Sora admired her so much. While other shied away from confrontation, she faced it head on regardless of the outcome. He then places a supportive hand on Kairi's shoulder and pleads her to back off while she still can. "Just let it go."

"It's like you said," Axel continues. "It's just some stupid TV show."

"You should listen to Lover Boy," the obnoxious teen advises as Kairi narrows her eyes. "He knows what he's talking about." It suddenly becomes Axel's turn to get riled up.

"Lover Boy?" he squeaks incredulously. "Listen here, you little buttsack," the pyromaniac starts, his hands gripping the railings of the fence separating the regular lane from the fast lane. "You don't know a single thing about me, and while you spend the rest of your afternoon waiting to get on this thirty second ride, I get to walk right by, so you can suck my ass."

The teen merely blinks twice at Axel's random outburst.

"Come on guys," the redhead then mumbles while throwing his hands into the pockets of his jeans. "Let's dip."

"Actually," Kairi starts. She looks towards the end of the line and gulps as her hands, which were previously balled into fists, slacken and fall to her sides. "You go ahead."

Axel's jaw nearly drops. Some sort of redhead telepathy allows him into her mind for just a few moments.

"You're not actually thinking of waiting in this lineup, are you?" the pyromaniac asks. "It's _at least_ a two hour wait. You don't need to prove anything to these guys, Kairi."

When his fellow redhead doesn't budge, Axel grabs Roxas by the arm and pulls him towards the front of the line.

"Fine, suit yourself," he says. "Have fun, princess."

As Axel drags his best friend away, the latter mouths an apology to Kairi.

"You can go ahead with them," Kairi tells Olette who has yet to leave her side, but instead of running after the dynamic duo, her roommate's feet remained planted on the ground.

"You chose me to come on this vacation with you," the brunette explains. "So I'm not going anywhere without you, Kairi."

And just when Kairi smiles—truly smiles—for the first time that day, Sora comes running towards her with two cotton candies in hand.

"Hey girls," he starts breathlessly. "I got you two cotton candies in case the fast lane also had a wait time."

"Wow, not only were you incapable of waiting in line, but you even had the help at your castle follow you around and get you cotton candy?" a different teen calls out. "Princess alert!"

Sora gasps at the accusations. "What? No, you guys don't understand! She didn't ask for these! I willingly gave these to her!"

"You don't need to lie for her, Sora!" a fangirl shouts amidst the crowd. "We like you better with Riku anyway!"

As shouts of agreement follow, a red-faced Sora turns to a disappointed looking Kairi.

"Hey," he starts softly. "Don't listen to them. You know you're not the kind of princess they claim you to be. Here," Sora then offers Kairi one of the cotton candy cones. "Have some! It'll make you feel better."

"Thanks, Sora," Kairi murmurs as she accepts the treat. "If you're looking for me, I'll just be at the back of the line."

Sora and Olette share a look before deciding to follow Kairi to the end of the line.

It's the longest two hours she's ever had to wait.

* * *

Back at the Disney Castle, Riku hums tunelessly to himself as he walks down the third floor hallway with his cleaning kit in hand. Just as he turns the corner to the east wing, the sound of muffled electronic dance music interrupts his current tune and causes him to frown. Who could possibly be playing music so loud that it even made the knights in the hallway shake?

Riku's questions are answered when he arrives at Hayner's door. The east wing was always a subject of dread for both Riku and Sora for numerous reasons, but each reason happened to come from the same person. With a reluctant groan, Riku inserts the key card to Hayner's room and pushes it open, fully expecting another pile of used tissues, but he is luckily mistaken.

The gamer's room, which was previously a girly rendition of Aurora's chambers, had suddenly transformed into a man cave equipped with a mini fridge, a foosball table, a one-hundred inch plasma screen TV with surround sound speakers, and gaming systems galore. The walls, which used to be a pale pink, were now navy blue with poorly taped posters donning each side, and in the center stood a life-sized version of Captain America's shield encased in a glass podium.

"Wha…" is Riku's initial reaction. "Where the hell did all this come from?"

Hayner, who sits on his new leather couch in front of the plasma screen, answers without tearing his eyes off the screen.

"Used all my complementary munny on renovating my room and having people drag in the goods," he says.

"Two thousand munny got you all this?" Riku asks with disbelief.

"No no," Hayner answers. "Two thousand munny just got me the glass podium for Cap's shield. The rest was from my MeTube fund."

"And you chose to spend it on renovating a room that you'll only be in for the next two months?" Riku asks while admiring the shield in all its vibranium glory.

"Well I wasn't about to spend all my time here living like Malibu Barbie," Hayner points out.

"Was the shield really necessary though?" Riku asks. "It's sick, but still."

"Contractor wouldn't let me renovate the room unless it had something Disney-related," the gamer explains. "So voila. Cap shield."

"And… what?" Riku squeaks when his eyes land on the corner of Hayner's room. "Is that a stripper pole?"

"It's a fire escape!" the gamer argues.

Riku only manages to shake his head. He suddenly finds himself wondering what it would be like to venture into the obsessive mind of the teenager before him but thinks better of it in case he himself got sucked into the brink of despair. Instead, he chooses to leave the room and shuts the door behind him for a more productive use of his time. The room next to Hayner's always proved to be a much easier task.

Riku raps his knuckles against the door and receives no response. After a second round, there's still no response, so Riku inserts the key card only to find Xion lying on her teacup bed with her earphones plugged in.

"Oh," Riku says as the owner of the room sits up and unplugs her ears. "Sorry. You didn't answer the door so I thought the room was empty."

"It's fine," Xion answers, but Riku can't help but notice how pale and weak she looks in comparison to earlier.

"You didn't go with them to The Pier?" Riku asks as he sets his cleaning kit down.

"Nah," Xion answers, feigning disinterest. "Not my scene."

Riku crosses his arms with suspicion. He'd caught her joking around with Axel in the castle a few times. She seemed like the fun-loving type.

"I didn't see you leave for the welcoming party either," he then points out. "Why haven't you left the castle, Xion?"

Xion turns slightly red at his concern. She had no idea that someone else apart from Naminé noticed her lack of outdoor exposure.

It also didn't hurt that that someone was very easy on the eyes.

"Sorry," she then says. Realistically, she'd only met Riku three days ago. "You have to be at least a level five friend to unlock my tragic backstory."

As a sign of persistence, Riku walks over to Xion's lounge and pulls over a mushroom-shaped beanbag chair to the edge of her bed and sits on it.

"Come on, Xion. You can tell me," he assures.

"Why, because it's your job?" Xion asks bitterly. "I don't think your funtertaining services are required for this one, Riku."

Xion is surprised when Riku refuses to budge.

"I'm not asking you because it's my job," he says calmly. "I'm asking you because a) I don't want to do my job and clean, and b) I'm curious to know why someone like yourself would rather lock yourself in here doing the things you can do back home rather than having fun out there."

Xion turns her head and looks towards her balcony doors with a longing expression—a gesture that doesn't go by unnoticed by Riku. She thinks about telling him, and the more she does, the more she wants him to know. Apart from immediate family, the only people that knew were Roxas and Axel, and all of the above thought trapping her in a cage was best for her condition.

Xion sighs. It's not like she was going anywhere, and her life was going to be over soon anyway. What did she have to lose? She then turns to look at Riku with a heavy heart.

"It's called geostigma," she starts solemnly.

Riku's expression suddenly hardens. She needn't continue. He was born into a generation of doctors. He already knew. He'd heard of it before. He knew what it entailed. He mentally berates himself for pestering her about it. He didn't mean to trigger something so serious.

"I'd… I'd tell you I'm sorry, but you've probably heard it all before," Riku decides to say. Xion only nods. "How long?"

"I'm considered lucky if I'm not a total vegetable within three years," Xion answers. Riku inhales sharply. That was much shorter than he expected.

"Does Axel know?" Riku asks.

Xion nods weakly. "Him and Roxas are the only other ones who know."

"And what do they want to do about it?"

Xion twiddles her thumbs, refusing to look Riku in the eye.

"Well, they wanted to use their share of the Battle of the Bands' prize munny on the treatments my mother couldn't afford," she explains. Then, after a contemplative silence: "wouldn't afford," she corrects.

Riku's fists noticeably clench at his thighs. "And what do they mean to do now?"

"Well, because of my… condition…" Xion carefully words, "Axel think its best I stay inside so that I'm not exposed to anything that could make it, well, worse than it already is."

Riku noticeably shakes his head in disapproval. "And Roxas?"

"He tries to make the inside more… bearable," Xion answers.

Unable to contain his anger, Riku jumps from his seat and walks towards Xion's balcony doors. He places a slightly shaky hand on the doorknob and, slowly but surely, unlocks it. He pushes the double doors aside and welcomes the warmth of the sun on his face, the sound of laughter from below, and the feeling of summer freedom that the wind before him promised.

This is what Xion is missing out on. She may have been trapped indoors like Naminé and Hayner, but the former feared the outdoors and the latter simply condemned himself to a summer full of video games and sugary energy drinks. Geostigma may have been merciless, but it didn't strike fast unless provoked, which meant that at her current state, Xion was fully capable of doing what she wished.

The sight of a young woman halfway down the bridge storming towards the castle suddenly catches his eye. Even from his current distance her vibrant red hair can't be missed, and the fact that she is so easily admitted past the gates only confirms Riku's suspicions that it really is Kairi hastily making her way inside. No more than thirty seconds behind her, two brunettes, one neatly groomed (presumably Olette) and the other with unruly spikes (undoubtedly Sora), follow suit.

Riku then turns his sights to the girl sitting at the edge of her bed with her head hung low. He can see a great deal of himself within her: alone, supposedly left by her two greatest friends, but unlike Axel and Roxas, Riku didn't want to focus on the end. He may have had a playboy persona to upkeep and satisfy over the course of the summer, but the Riku Sora and Kairi were more familiar with would try to make the next two and a half months worthwhile and memorable for the girl in the castle given that it could very well be her third last alive.

"Riku?" Xion calls.

The teen outside snaps out of his daze, suddenly realizing how long he must have been staring at her during his decision making. His eyes then dart back and forth between the girl and the open doors.

There was no reason he couldn't do both.

* * *

At the castle foyer, Sora and Olette split paths.

"I'll take the west wing, you take the east?" the latter asks, already acting on her game plan.

"Got it," Sora agrees as he playfully salutes his ex-girlfriend's roommate. After a few long strides, he eagerly opens the doors to the dining hall and makes his way to the kitchen.

After waiting in line for the hanging coaster ride that lasted no longer than two minutes in comparison to the two-hour wait, Kairi had run off to the one place she knew how to get to on the rather large island to escape the whispers: the castle. For ten minutes he and Olette trailed behind her, pushing through the gossiping crowds, and now found themselves searching for her in their temporary home. Sora, however, already knew where she'd be. It was the reason he so hastily agreed to search in the east wing, after all. When Kairi was upset, there was only one thing she could turn to apart from him and Riku that could instantly tame her sadness.

Sora stands before the freezer door within seconds. He whistles nonchalantly and paces with his hands behind his back as the kitchen crew walks by him with strange looks, but when the coast is clear, he pulls open the door and finds Kairi sitting cross-legged on the ground with an open tub of sea-salt ice cream on her lap and a spoon in hand.

"Hey," Sora greets as he cautiously approaches her.

"Hey," she mumbles, mouth half-full of creamy goodness. Sora wordlessly takes the spot next to her and grabs a spoon from the rack behind him.

"Do you mind?" he asks while gesturing his spoon towards the large tub. Kairi merely turns the tub towards him as an act of compliance. After a few minutes of silently enjoying their frozen treat, the ears of both teens perk upward when they hear a clicking sound by the door.

"What was that?" Kairi asks fearfully, her grip tightening on her spoon.

"Not sure," Sora says, eyes skittish as he sets his utensil down. He stands up, dusts off his shorts, and reaches for the handle only to find it locked in place. He blinks twice in confusion before trying again to no avail. After a few more failed attempts, he begins shaking the handle uncontrollably.

"Sora?" Kairi squeaks. With one hand still on the handle, the brunet turns to look at her with a sheepish grin.

"So I think we're kind of… locked in," he confesses.

" _What_?" Kairi shrieks. She sets the tub aside and begins shaking the handle in the same fashion that Sora had tried only moments ago. "You know what? I have a better idea," Kairi proposes as she reaches for her skirt pocket. She pulls out her phone only to have it betray her entirely.

"No signal?" she reads with disbelief. "Seriously?"

"Me neither," Sora says while checking his own phone.

"Don't you have any of those… walkie-talkie things?" Kairi asks desperately. "The ones you use to communicate with Riku? A master key card to open the door? Anything?"

Sora searches his pockets and emerges empty-handed.

"All right, looks like we're going to have to do this the old-fashioned way," Kairi decides as she cracks her knuckles. She then begins banging on the door and screaming as loud as she possibly can. "Hello? Is anybody out there? Help us please! Help! Help!"

When Kairi turns around to ask her partner for help, she finds him sitting back down and feasting on the tub of ice cream with a smile.

"Sora, are you being serious right now?" she asks with disbelief. "Do you understand what's going on? We're trapped in here with absolutely no forms of communication whatsoever!"

Her ex-boyfriend merely shrugs, spoon in hand. "I'm simply choosing to look at the other facts, Kairi. I don't know about you, but we're surrounded by tubs of ice cream and are free to feast on said tubs for the time being. If you ask me, that sounds like a pretty good way to die."

Kairi rolls her eyes and continues banging on the door. Typical Sora. Always trying to see the good in everything despite the consequences.

"Kairi, relax," Sora advises after ten minutes of door banging. "Someone's going to open the door eventually." He then glances at his watch. "It's five oh four. The kitchen crew has to start prepping for dinner soon anyways. Just take a seat."

"I can't," Kairi says, her voice wavering. "We have to get out of here, we have to try…"

"Kairi," Sora asks tiredly. She only continues to hammerfist the steel door, each hit becoming slower and weaker than the last.

"We have to… get out… of here," she whimpers, and once her whines transition into sobs, Sora gets up from his spot and grabs her by the wrists before she can continue abusing the door.

"Jeez Kairi, I didn't think you hated being with me that much," Sora jokes, trying to lighten the mood. Kairi merely sniffles in response. "This… isn't about being trapped in here with me, is it?" Sora asks. Kairi slowly shakes her head. "Come here," Sora says as he leads her back to her corner of the freezer.

"I'm sorry you got dragged into this," Kairi says in between hiccups. "If you hadn't run after me you would've have been trapped in here."

"Hey, it's not your fault," Sora assures. "This was my choice. Besides, I've always wanted to be trapped in a freezer full of ice cream. This is like a dream come true for me, honestly."

His joke is rewarded with a smile, but it is short-lived.

"I'm sorry you have to see me like this," Kairi whimpers. "The whispers didn't bother me at first, but after a while they just…"

"Got to you?" Sora finishes. When Kairi nods, Sora throws his head back to rest against the cool rails. "I can't blame you for feeling that way, Kairi. Anyone would," he assures. "You don't need to care about what they think. They don't matter. It's like you said: it's just some stupid show. They don't know who you really are."

"And who's to say they know who I am?" Kairi asks. "Sometimes I don't even know who I am. One second I'm this tough cookie and in the next I'm this blubbering baby."

Sora knowingly shakes his head. It was always like Kairi to act tough for everyone's sake but her own, and he was honoured to be one of the select few that saw her softer side.

"I… I think I know who you are," he then says, his voice barely above a whisper. From his peripheral vision, he sees Kairi turn to look at him with misty eyes and a curious expression.

"You're a perfectionist," Sora starts. "A straight A student, the hardest working person I know. You like strawberry milkshakes with extra whip and fries with spicy mayo on the side," he continues. "You're a tier one gold belt in the Keyblade Arts, a volleyball whiz, and are an absolute monster in the water. Like seriously, sometimes I think you're secretly a waterbender."

Sora grins when he sees Kairi chuckle beside him. Their shoulders brush for a brief moment, and for the first time in their freezer debacle, a rush of familiar warmth overwhelms them both.

"You're a mean Call of Destiny sniper," Sora continues. "Your favourite scent is warm vanilla sugar, and you never miss an opportunity to punch someone's shoulder every time you spot a yellow punch buggy." Then, with a heavy sigh, "You also like to put everyone's feelings and thoughts above your own at the expense of your own happiness."

Kairi gives him a look that tells him that she's unsure whether to take his latest statement as a compliment or an insult.

"It's certainly not a bad thing," Sora clarifies. "Sure, it sucks that you're a little too hard on yourself, but putting other people before yourself is an admirable quality. It's… one of the things I find so great about you," Sora confesses.

In attempts to conceal her upcoming blush, Kairi hugs her legs with a flattered smile. If the effect sea-salt ice cream had on her could be condensed into human form, it would undoubtedly be Sora. He always knew what to say in times of trouble and had a way of making even the rainiest situations a beautiful day. It was one of the things she found so great about him.

"I'm sorry I've been such a wiatch," Kairi confesses when she finally looks Sora in the eye. "I've been nothing but mean and evasive towards you these last few days because seeing you that first day overwhelmed me, and I didn't know how to act around you, so… I just wanted to say sorry."

Sora accepts the apology with a welcoming smile.

"I'm sorry I tried forcing my romantic intentions on you right away," Sora then apologizes in return. "That was pretty inconsiderate of me considering how long we've been apart and how soon you got to the resort, so I'm… also sorry."

The two almost laugh at loud at the awkward silence that follows. In all their years growing up together, the air between them had never been so uncomfortable. Time after time, they had always been side-by-side, shoulder-to-shoulder as they were now, whether it was at the park bench near Sora's house or in the school hallway eating lunch by their lockers. Now, on the supposed happiest place on earth for teenagers everywhere, they were shoulder-to-shoulder but felt miles apart.

"Is there a way for us to just… start over?" Kairi suggests. "Not from the _very_ beginning, but just as…"

"Friends?" Sora finishes with a hopeful smile. When the word becomes less foreign to her, Kairi warms up to the idea with a nod.

"Yeah," she agrees, "I don't see why we can't be friends."

Then, just as if she had uttered the magic words, the freezer door suddenly opens to reveal Riku on the other side with crossed arms.

"Finally," he says with a smirk very evident on his face. "I was almost thinking I had to freeze you guys to death."

"Riku!" Sora greets, obviously paying no mind to the latter half of his statement.

"How long have you been standing there?" Kairi asks as she walks past the third pea in their pod.

"Like fifteen minutes," Riku confesses, earning him a playful arm jab.

"You can be such a jerk sometimes," Kairi says.

"So are you two finally friends now or what?" Riku asks. Kairi then turns to look at Sora in the freezer who still appears to be finishing the last of the ice cream in the tub. For a moment their eyes lock and Sora flashes her his signature grin, and in that moment Kairi figures that perhaps the summer wouldn't be as bad as she initially thought it would be.

"Yeah," Kairi answers when Sora finally walks out of the freezer to join them. "We are."

 **tbc**

* * *

 **Fun fact:** Captain America is my favourite Avenger. Kind of explains Hayner's choice of décor, no? However, The Guardians of the Galaxy are my absolute favourite. Drax may be my spirit animal.

Special thanks to **Spiderfan626, Dhaturas, skysailz, DestinyKeyblader28, MelodicEnigma, It's My Lucky Charm** and **Arc of Carona** for reviewing the last chapter! It warms my heart to know that some of you still patiently wait for updates despite my unreliable update schedule. Thanks so much for that.

xoKyorii


	6. the teenage bucket list

**PROJECT: TEENAGE WASTELAND  
** **VI: the teenage bucket list**

In the Deep Jungle (otherwise known as Axel's home away from home for the next few weeks), a half-naked blonde rolls off the shirtless redhead and onto her back with a loud exhale. Beside the young woman, Axel lets out a low chuckle before running a hand through his—now—messy spikes.

"Good?" he asks while turning to face his companion with a haughty smirk.

"Meh, you were all right," she answers nonchalantly.

Axel shakes his head with amusement. "Really? Judging by how heavy you're breathing I'd say I was more than all right."

"Don't flatter yourself," the blonde says while scavenging the sheets for her discarded clothing.

"Leaving already?" Axel says as she pulls on her shirt.

"Believe it or not, I do see other people apart from you," his companion answers.

"Is that supposed to make me jealous?" Axel asks as he sits up to plant a kiss on the young woman's bare shoulder.

"No," she replies. "Was that bit about that Xion girl on TV supposed to make me jealous?"

Axel lets out a laugh. "Did that bother you? Cause you know, that would put a dent on our little arrangement here, Larxene."

The 'Larxene' character scoffs as she pulls on her socks. "Bothered? Please. I was just curious. Didn't think she was your type. Too… innocent looking."

"Xion's like a little sister to me," Axel explains. "You have nothing to be worried about."

"I wasn't worried in the first place," Larxene retorts.

"Sure you weren't," Axel whispers. He inches his face closer to hers only to have her place a finger to his lips before pushing herself off the slide connected to the edge of Axel's bed. She gracefully lands on the first floor of his room and waves farewell to the young man atop the supposed tree house.

"Bye, Axel," she says with a teasing edge to her voice.

Axel merely shakes his head with an amused grin. "See ya sweetheart."

Out in the hallway, Roxas nearly bumps into Axel's female companion.

"Oh, s-sorry!" Roxas stammers, red-faced at the presence of an unknown female leaving his best friend's bedroom. After a few seconds of shameless judging, Roxas manages to put the pieces together. He'd seen this girl before. There was something oddly familiar about the way she frowned…

"Bubblegum Bitch," he suddenly remembers with a whisper. He twitches at the uncomfortable memory from the plane.

"What the hell did you just say?" Larxene asks impatiently.

"Nothing!" Roxas squeaks. He brings out Axel's spare key card and enters his best friend's room without another word. Roxas catches the redhead just as he's throwing on his shirt.

"So who was that outside?" Roxas asks although he's pretty sure he already knows the answer.

"That was Larxene," Axel answers while sliding down from his tree house.

"A lady friend of yours I presume?" Roxas guesses.

"Old flame from university," Axel answers as his feet hit the ground. "Actually, scratch that. We weren't even close enough to constitute as partners. She was more like an… as-needed basis sort of flame. We just kinda… banged a lot after class."

"Then why'd the word flame come to mind?" Roxas asks suggestively.

Axel shrugs, feigning nonchalance. "Not sure, but you are aware of my obsession with fire, right? Just seemed to flow in the moment I guess. Haven't you ever voiced phrases without knowing their actual meaning before? Then realize after that you may or may not have used it in the right context?"

"Sure," Roxas agrees half-heartedly, not failing to notice how chatty his best friend had gotten ever since the mention of this 'Larxene'. "So did you know she was coming to the island? How often do you… you know, see her?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Axel asks haughtily. He disregards Roxas' frown with a light chuckle. "But to answer your question, no, I didn't know. I just ran into her the other day and we've since resumed our… arrangement, I guess."

"Wow," comes Roxas' response. "Must be one hell of a gal for you to keep an arrangement this long."

"She is," Axel says. "I-In bed, I mean," he corrects when he notices Roxas' boyish smirk and raised eyebrows. "So where's your lady?" Axel suddenly asks to change the subject.

"In the art studio," Roxas answers. "She'll be preoccupied there for pretty much the whole day. Do you have any plans?"

"Thought about checking out that Alliance of the Ancients competition later today, but other than that, I'm all yours. What's up?"

"Just thought it would be good to get some workouts in," Roxas suggests. "You know, to improve my stamina for the Battle of the Bands performances? Although… I'm sure you've already had your share of cardio for today."

Axel merely snickers in agreement.

"Yeah, well, doesn't hurt to get more," he then says. "Meet you in the gym in ten."

"Got it," Roxas responds with an understanding nod.

As he takes his leave, he can't help but notice the lovestruck smile on Axel's face as he chooses more appropriate attire for the day's activities. Despite labeling her as his "as-needed basis sort of flame", Roxas had never seen Axel talk about a girl the way he spoke about Larxene. Even through their Skype calls, the slightest twinkle in his seductive green eyes was never present when he shared unwanted details about his sexual conquests throughout his first year of university.

At their current rate, Roxas knows that this supposed flame isn't going out anytime soon.

* * *

In the east wing of the third floor, in the middle of her morning routine, Xion hears her door burst open.

"Riku," she greets as she walks out of her bathroom and into her bedroom.

"We're going out today," Riku says.

"Uh…" Xion mumbles as she lets her hair down from the previous towel turban it was carefully wrapped in. "I'd love to, but Axel would never allow me to step out of the castle."

"Not if he doesn't know it's you," Riku points out. He then empties the rather large shopping bag in his hands onto her bed to reveal a selection of colourful clothing, wigs, and makeup. "Besides, he's far too focused on Battle of the Bands to even notice if you've left."

Xion places a hand to her mouth to both suppress a laugh and somewhat hide her reddened cheeks. Riku's plan was absolutely ridiculous—sweet, but ridiculous. "Where did you get all this stuff?"

"Snuck out this morning and stole a couple of things from the island's theatre department," Riku answers with nonchalance.

"And what exactly are we going to use it for in the grand scheme of things?" Xion questions.

"Well, you see," Riku starts while plopping himself down on one of the mushroom beanbag chairs. "Unlike Roxas and Axel, I personally don't want to focus on the end. I'm simply choosing to look at all the possibilities beforehand. With that being said, I was up all night making this." Riku then reaches into the pocket of his beige shorts and pulls out a neatly folded piece of lined paper.

"The teenage bucket list," Xion reads upon receiving it. She makes out about fifteen concrete ideas on the list that haven't been crossed out or scribbled across.

"It's still a work in progress," Riku confesses. "But those are just the ones I could think of last night."

"Riku…" Xion starts, her voice wavering and lip quivering. "This is wonderful. Thank you for this. You have no idea how much I appreciate it, but…"

"In my eighteen years of existence, I've never known anything good to come after the word 'but'," Riku interrupts.

"But I can't let you do this," Xion continues. "You have a job to do here, and I don't want to get in the way of that."

"The job listing was for a Funtertainer," Riku explains. "By doing this, I _am_ technically doing my job, so please. Let's try this."

"But why?" Xion asks as she sits at the edge of her bed. "You hardly know me. Why would you want to spend most of your summer with some girl at the end of the hallway?"

"Because apart from Roxas and Axel, I'm the only other one who knows," Riku answers. "And if I sit idly by and do nothing about it, I'll hate myself. I know there's much more to being a teenager than what's on that list, and I know three years is hardly enough time, but I want you to be able to experience the awkwardness and embarrassment of it all with the time you're given." Riku then stands up from the beanbag chair and sits next to Xion on the edge of her teacup bed. "I have an entire lifetime of people to disappoint, but I only get two months with you, Xi, so I'm doing this."

Xion's grip tightens on the list as she shuts her eyes and exhales. "Would I be incredibly selfish if I accepted?"

"Not if I offered in the first place," Riku replies. "Besides, being selfish is an essential part of being a teenager. You just gotta do things for yourself sometimes—but not all the time of course, otherwise you'd be labeled an asshole."

Xion chuckles amidst teary eyes at the joke.

"Okay," she then says. "Okay. We're doing this."

"Awesome. Did you read the first thing on the list?" Riku then asks.

"One: full makeover," Xion reads.

"Yeah. That was standard in pretty much every chick flick I've suffered through with Kairi, so... um… do you by any chance know how to use this… stuff?" Riku then asks, clearly referring to the makeup.

This time round, Xion freely releases her chuckle. "Look, I know I'm not much of a catch, but I'm not a total dud. I am capable of gussying up every now and then."

"So in other words, you're going to watch MeTube tutorials," Riku says knowingly, seeing through his companion completely.

"Pretty much," Xion admits shamelessly.

"Um, good," Riku mutters, unsure of what would constitute as a proper response. "Let's get to it then."

* * *

In the first floor of the west wing, Kairi and Olette try their hand at tennis against Roxas and Axel in the castle's gymnasium. The latter team was currently in the lead, but not by a landslide as the former was putting up quite a fight.

"You know, you two are much quicker than I thought," Axel confesses to the girls after they'd agreed on a well-deserved five-minute break.

"Well what do you know, P.E. class does come in handy sometimes," Olette jokes.

"Right, right, you two go to that prissy boarding school in Radiant Garden," Axel recalls.

"Axel," Roxas warns after downing his water bottle.

"What? I'm just pointing out the facts," Axel says. "Is it true that you all get a butler that serves you caviar 24/7?"

"Yes," Kairi answers with clear sarcasm. "He also serves us cans of whoop ass, which we're about to serve you in this next half."

"Oh ho ho!" Axel cheers. "Big talk for such a little girl! You're on princess."

"Do you mind if I join?" a familiar voice interjects. At the entrance of the gymnasium, Tidus Clearwater walks towards the group coincidentally dressed in tennis attire and a matching blue racquet in hand. Behind the two boys, Kairi and Olette begin to giggle amongst each other.

"Hm, I don't know man," Roxas starts teasingly. "It was already unfair for these ladies to go against someone of our caliber."

"Roxas," Kairi then says through gritted teeth.

Tidus chuckles heartily. "I'll be on their team then. Three against two?"

"Make that two against two," Olette says while hanging her racquet back in place. "I'm pretty beat."

"What?" Kairi nearly screams. "Olette, please."

"Have fun," the brunette says in a singsong voice before taking a seat on the sidelines.

"Looks like its me and you," Tidus voices while offering Kairi a kind smile.

"Yeah," Kairi says while resisting the urge to hug her elbow like a lovestruck schoolgirl in the presence of her childhood crush. "Guess so."

On the other side of the net, Axel and Roxas snicker while taking their positions. The second half commences, but Kairi is oddly slower this time round. She misses shots she normally wouldn't, and her footwork is sloppy. Olette notices.

"What's wrong, princess?" Axel taunts. "This can of whoop ass appears to be very undercooked!"

"Sorry Tidus," Kairi apologizes to her partner, red-faced. "I just haven't worked on my swing in a while. I'm a little rusty."

Olette's eyebrows rise at the word "rusty".

"That's no problem," Tidus assures. "Do you want me to give you a few pointers?"

"Really? That would be great," Kairi says through a grateful smile that is undoubtedly fake.

After Tidus asks for a timeout, he positions himself behind Kairi and guides her arm into a proper swing—the same swing that Kairi was perfectly fully capable of executing no more than ten minutes ago. When their small audience gets the gist of what's really happening, they unsuccessfully try to conceal their disapproving chuckles.

The game resumes, and after Kairi supposedly gets her swing back, Roxas hits the ball out of bounds on her side. Just as Kairi walks over to pick up the ball, it rolls onto the bottom of a familiar yellow sneaker. She looks up to find Sora smirking down at her with a tray of iced teas in one hand.

"What?" she grunts under her breath.

"You know, it's actually more attractive if you try," Sora advises as he kicks the ball upward into his free hand.

"What would you know about it?" Kairi asks while attempting to swipe the ball from his hand, but Sora is too quick and moves it out of her reach while keeping the drinks in perfect balance.

"I happen to be a guy," Sora answers. "And there's absolutely no need to downgrade yourself for a guy, Kai. Just saying."

He tosses the ball into the air and Kairi manages to catch it, through ungracefully. Sora then sets the tray of drinks down beside Olette, who acknowledges his gesture with an appreciative nod, and begins to walk towards the entrance empty handed. With skittish eyes, Kairi reassumes her position on the court, but instead of aiming the ball towards Axel's side, she 'accidentally' aims for the back of Sora's retreating figure. She expects it to hit him square in the neck, but he turns around fast enough to catch it right before it whizzes past his head.

"Challenge accepted," he says, his grip noticeably tightening on the ball.

Kairi merely smirks at Sora's willingness to accept her invitation.

Sora then walks over to Roxas' side and his cousin wordlessly hands over his racquet without question. If there was someone who was fully aware of Sora and Kairi's obsession with competition, it was him. Axel and Tidus also leave the court out of respect, and once the tips of their sneakers pass the boundaries, the court transforms into a war zone.

Sora doesn't hold back serving the ball, but Kairi strikes back with equal fervor, and soon enough, the heads of Olette, Roxas, Tidus, and Axel move left and right in synchronicity as they watch the two go at each other and forget about their existence completely. Kairi's tennis grunts turn into full on battle cries, and Sora's gasps for air eventually transition into yells.

Eternity passes, but it is an eternity well spent. At the end of their rallying, Tidus approaches Kairi with loud applause.

"Whoa, rusty my ass!" he compliments. "Where did that come from? That was great!"

"Guess I just needed to loosen up a bit," Kairi confesses.

From the corner of her eye, she catches Sora mouth the words "I told you so" while Roxas offers him a back massage. Kairi merely rolls her eyes and is about to resume her conversation with Tidus until two retreating figures in the corner of the gymnasium catch her eye. She's able to make out Riku as one of them.

"Hey, Riku!" she hollers. He noticeably flinches before turning towards her with the fakest of smiles.

"Hey Kairi," he greets. "What's going on?"

"You just missed Sora get obliterated," Kairi informs.

"What?" Sora yells defensively. "I did not! We were on pretty equal terms! Vagina power! Or, uh… penis power? Wh… how do I make this sound less douchebag-y but collectively equal at the same time?"

"By not talking," Kairi advises.

Riku merely chuckles at their childish antics. He'd grown far too used to it over the year. "I see some things never change."

"And some do," Roxas interjects with a surprised and curious look on his face. "Riku, who's this?"

At 'this', a lavender-eyed, blue-haired girl dressed in a black and white sundress nervously peers at everyone behind Riku's shoulder.

"Oh… this?" Riku asks calmly. "This is…" He wracks his brain for an answer, thinking of a new identity for the girl at the end of the hallway. It's then that he remembers the mushroom beanbag chairs in her Wonderland-themed room and claps his hands together.

"Alice," he finally answers. "This is Alice. She's a girl I'm… seeing."

"Seeing," Sora repeats with suspicion as 'Alice' turns slightly red. "Sure."

Kairi elbows Sora (who lets out a pained groan) and offers Alice her hand out of common courtesy.

"Nice to meet you, Alice. I'm Kairi," the redhead introduces. "This is Sora, Olette, Tidus, Roxas, and—"

"Axel Kiryu," the pyromaniac himself introduces. "Get that name memorized, because you'll be—"

"Never seeing him again!" Roxas finishes before his best friend can finish his signature line. Axel crosses his arms and growls at the unexpected interruption.

"Yeah… we're gonna be heading out now," Riku says amidst the awkward silence.

"Oh! Where to?" Sora asks out of sheer curiosity and naiveté. "Theatres? Mini golf? Waterpar—"

" _To make out somewhere_ ," Riku answers abruptly in hopes to shut his best friend up.

Sora immediately turns red and begins to rub the back of his head sheepishly. "Oh… haha… that sounds… good. You should… um… get to it then?"

Kairi then pulls on Sora's arm and begins to drag him away along with everyone else. "Sora, we should just… yeah, come on…"

"I promise we'll be normal the next time you see us!" Roxas assures when they're halfway across the gymnasium.

" _If_ you see us!" Axel screams. "This guy brings home a new girl every week! But don't worry, I'll gladly be here for all your rebounding nee—mmph!"

"Oh my God…" Riku says as Roxas forcefully drags his best friend away with a hand over his mouth.

"It's okay," 'Alice' assures. "Let's go."

On the other side of the gymnasium, Roxas finally releases his hand from Axel's mouth.

"She was hot," is the first thing the redhead says.

"Axel!" Roxas exclaims disapprovingly.

"What?" the pyromaniac asks defensively. "She was."

* * *

"Well that was sufficiently awkward," Riku confesses as he speeds through the resort roads in his employee golf cart. "I'm sorry that happened. The gym has the only exit to my cart but I had no idea there would actually be people in there. Who the hell actually works out on summer vacation anyways?"

Beside him, Xion giggles into the palm of her hand as the summer wind blows through her—now—midnight blue hair.

"Don't even worry about it," she assures. "Besides, I can't deny that it was possibly one of the most entertaining life experiences I've had."

"Yeah… let's hope we top that this summer," Riku mutters.

"So what exactly are we doing?" Xion asks as a parking lot comes into view.

"Why don't you check number two on the list?" Riku suggests. Xion then pulls the slip of paper from her dress pocket.

"Number two: learn to drive," she reads.

"Yet another significant milestone for most teenagers," Riku explains as he pulls into a vacant spot in the parking lot. "But since I don't have my car and we're not old enough to rent one, I figured that go karts would suffice."

It's then that Xion notices the winding track up ahead with cars zipping through at a remarkably fast pace.

"Whoa," she breathes at the magnificent sight. "Axel would never let me do this."

"Axel would never let _Xion_ do this," Riku specifies as they walk towards the lineup. He then presents the entrance to her with a flourish. "Alice can do as she pleases."

Xion chuckles at the name he'd made for her and begins to walk through the fast pass lineup. As they wait in line, Riku watches as Xion admires the cars with both fear and anticipation in her eyes and suddenly becomes more aware of the former the moment he feels the ground rumble due to the cars' incredible speed. It seemed like a good idea in his room in the middle of the night, but now that he was physically in the space, he realized just how much danger this activity could potentially bring to Xion. If something were to ever happen to her…

It would be his fault entirely.

She then takes a helmet from the rack, but before she can strap it on, Riku forcefully grabs onto the other side, holding the piece of protective gear in place between them.

"Wait," he pleads. "Um… I'm just now realizing something."

"What?" Xion asks fearfully.

"I never asked if you were okay with any of this," Riku realizes. "I kind of just… pleaded you to go with it without bothering to ask for permission."

"Riku," Xion starts reassuringly.

"A-Are you okay with this? You're not… frightened, are you? Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all…" he stammers as another car zips past them uncontrollably. If only Sora and Kairi could see him now: the great playboy Riku, nothing more than a stammering mess before the girl at the end of the hallway.

"Riku," Xion repeats, silencing him this time. "I'm more scared that you _won't_ let me do this, honestly."

At this, Riku's grip on the helmet slackens, and Xion willingly accepts the helmet with a craving for adventure in her lavender eyes.

"I'm choosing to do this, all right?" Xion assures as she places the helmet on her head. "I'm doing this for me."

Riku grins and helps her tighten the strap on her chin himself. "All right."

"So are you done with your little moment here or what?" the worker at the front of the line asks impatiently, ruining whatever they had left of said moment. "Seriously, are you two about to bang for the first time or something? Get a move on already."

While Xion bites back a laugh, Riku pushes through with an annoyed expression.

"We're going, we're going, sheesh," he mutters under his breath as he takes his rightful place in the passenger's seat while Xion plops down beside him in the driver's.

"Right pedal to accelerate, left to break, steering wheel to steer," Riku tries to explain, but all Xion can focus on is the hum of the engine, the smell of gasoline, and the colour of Riku's viridian eyes.

"... and try not to bump into anyone, got it?" Riku asks when Xion tunes back into reality.

"Sure," she lies.

"Then let's give it a go," Riku suggests. "On the count of three. One..."

"Twothree!" Xion exclaims, and they're off.

 **tbc**

* * *

 **Fun fact:** This chapter was supposed to be much longer, but I've decided to split it in half due to how dialogue heavy this chapter suddenly became! Sorry not sorry. That just means more room for fun in the next chapter.

Special thanks to **Mather12, Tyjet Ansatsu, MusicalSage, It's My Lucky Charm, alwaysmile, Mokimoki-chan, GiantHouseKey, DestinyKeyblader28, acidic wrath, snow x fairy, Cale Norling** , and **skysailz** for reviewing the last chapter! I apologize if I missed or misspelled any names.

I hope you enjoyed the sixth installment of Project: Teenage Wasteland! Please kindly leave a review to share your thoughts and/or feels, I apologize for any grammar errors that might have missed, and I'll see you all in the next chapter!


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